A whole new community is being created on the previously derelict Nine Elms industrial site.

With thousands of homes and new jobs comes thousands of people who are going to be making journeys across the capital.

Alexandra Rucki looks at transport, infrastructure and the physical impact the regeneration project will have in our Unlocking Wandsworth series.

Wandsworth Times:

 

NORTHERN LINE EXTENSION

The Northern Line extension is the key to unlocking the potential of the Nine Elms site, linking Battersea to the tube network for the first time.

It is hoped the extension will aid the regeneration of the area, supporting the creation of 25,000 news jobs.

Two new tube stations are being opened, located at Battersea Power Station and Wandsworth Road.

They will connect to Northern Line at Kennington Station, with journey times to and from the West End and the City cut to 15 minutes.

During the construction phase temporary tunnel shafts are being built in Radcot Street and Harmsworth Street, Kennington.

Permanent shafts will be created in Kennington Green and Kennington Park.

A billion-pound funding package was agreed by the Government in December, moving the proposal closer.

An independent inspector is currently preparing a report following a public enquiry which ran at the end of last year and a decision is expected by the Secretary of State for Transport by autumn.

Ground investigations are being undertaken by Transport for London to understand conditions where new tunnels would be constructed.

Wandsworth Times:

PAYMENT

Work will include the drilling of small bore holes in locations across Kennington, Nine Elms and Battersea.

The work is expected to begin by April this year during the day from 8am to 6pm to minimise disruption.

Construction work is proposed to start by spring 2015, with the new stations in operation by 2020.

The £1bn funding package for the extension is being borrowed from the Public Works Loan Board.

A unique repayment of the borrowing is being funded by the new businesses setting up shop in Nine Elms.

An enterprise zone is being created in Wandsworth.

The council will use the business rates revenue to fund the extension of the Northern Line.
Loan repayments would also be made through contributions by developers collected through the Community Infrastructure Levy.

It is the first time such a scheme has been used in England, which could set a new model for financing future transport schemes.

Wandsworth Times:

TIME LINE

The project was set in motion four years ago and is expected to take up to 10 years.

February 2011 planning permission granted for Riverlight, previously named Tideway Wharf.

September 2011 Construction work begins on first development Riverlight.

June 2012 New Covent Garden Market and One Nine Elms granted planning permission.

August 2012 Eastbury House granted planning permission.

March 2012 Nine Elms parkside approved, including shops, businesses and a primary school.

September 2012 Permission for US Embassy granted.

June 2013 China's largest development company Wanda purchases One Nine Elms.

December 2012 first phase of Battersea Power Station granted permission.

January 2013 First flats go on sale in Battersea Power Station.

April 2013 Dutch embassy announces plans to move from Hyde Park Gate to Nine Elms by 2017

July 2013 Construction work begins on Battersea Power Station.

July 2013 Park area Riverside Gardens opens, made possible through section 106 agreement with developers St George.

November 2013 Public enquiry launches into the Northern Line Extension

2014 - Riverlight development expected to be complete by end of the year.

2015 - Estimated Embassy Gardens completion date.

2016 - Estimated Battersea Power Station completion date.

2017 - Estimated US Embassy completion date.

2020 - Northern Line extension to go operational.

Wandsworth Times:

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Steve Pinto, chairman of Wandsworth Chamber of Commerce, said businesses in the area were already heavily involved in the project.

He said the chamber is building up a directory of businesses and hosting events over the next year.

Mr Pinto said: "The tube extension is really integral to the whole project of Nine Elms. From a commuting point of view businesses will find it so much easier to access that area.

"It will be a huge boom for new and current residents to access the rest of London.

"As a chamber, we see a lot of businesses will be attracted to that area because of the new developments and clearly a lot of businesses will want to work in that area because of the American Embassy.

"It is such a long development process it is still quite early days. We are extremelly upbeat about the whole concept of it."


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