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O2 not thrilled as Jubilee line shuts for Michael Jackson's big tour
Katharine Barney and Amar Singh20 May 2009
Michael Jackson's comeback at the O2 is to be marred by Tube chaos.
Tens of thousands of his fans will be caught up in weekend closures of the Jubilee line at the start of his 50-date residency in London.
Senior Transport for London officials and bosses of O2 have held crisis talks over the closures, which threaten to leave thousands of people with major delays getting to and from the concerts.
North Greenwich, on the Jubilee line, is the only Tube link to the venue. Today Transport Commissioner Peter Hendy said he was “frustrated” by the situation.
Senior officials said it had been forced on them as private contractor Tube Lines raced to complete a major upgrade of the Jubilee line which has to be in place by December. The firm has fallen two months behind schedule in its plans.
It has told TfL it needs to have a series of closures of the Jubilee line east of Green Park every weekend throughout the summer to get work done in time. The company had been supposed to finish in July - but instead will badly clash with the start of Jackson's “This Is It” comeback.
Sources at O2, who learned of the closures in talks held between Mr Hendy and the venue's chief executive David Campbell, said they were “upset” at the difficulty Jackson fans would face.
A spokeswoman for AEG, owners and operators of The O2 arena said: “The additional Jubilee line closures are not ideal but we are working with TfL, as we always have done, to minimise the disruption to our visitors. Together we have put in place a robust alternative transport plan which has already proven to work.”
A source close to Mr Campbell told the Standard: “David has been frustrated about these closures. He has got used to this being an ongoing issue.”
There is increasing concern within TfL at work on the upgrade to the Jubilee line.
Tube Lines is due to deliver a complete refurbishment which will increase capacity by a third - meaning a train almost every two minutes.
From September the line is likely to suffer a string of weekend closures from Waterloo to Stanmore basis to install the new signals which allow the increased frequency.
Tube Lines chief executive today Terry Morgan, apologised for the inconvenience but said the closure would still take place.
He said: “We appreciate that weekend closures cause difficulties for passengers and we regret the inconvenience they cause, so the decision to take additional closures was not taken lightly. However, the closures are absolutely vital to enable us to complete the installation and testing of the system in the Neasden area which is the most technically complex area on the entire line.
“These additional weekend closures will enable us deliver this important project on time and to the benefits of passengers for many years to come.”
London Underground managing director Richard Parry said: “We will, of course, do everything we can to mitigate the impact on customers.
“As always London Underground will operate rail replacement buses where no other transport is available to meet demand.”
Reader views (2)
Part of the Jubilee Line is closed every week. Are they just doing it to save money?
- Adrian, London, 21/05/2009 07:29
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I hope that the river can be used to move people to and from the venue. It makes more sense than the crowds trying to negotiate traffic-jammed roads, with all the attendant problems.
Just think, if the river-boat comapnies got their act together, they could make a good profit and anyone who worked those shifts would end up getting some overtime!
- Pam, London, 20/05/2009 14:24
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