Apologies after 'farce' of flyover repair delays

Havering Council has branded the continued delays in reopening Gallows Corner flyover "extremely disappointing" and a "farce".

Transport for London (TfL) says it will not meet the 30 April reopening date as Essex & Suffolk Water (ESW) has more work to do on the water mains.

Work began on replacing the ageing flyover and repairing the busy roundabout in east London last March. It was initially meant to reopen in September but progress was marred by similar delays.

Scott Haxton, TfL's director of capital delivery, said last week that "all significant TfL works" had been completed but ESW, which has apologised, had "identified further work needed to ensure the water main is fully assured".

Although TfL says it is "very sorry" to residents facing continued commuter chaos, Havering's chief executive Andrew Blake-Herbert said: "Considering the closure was only supposed to last a few months, it has now become a bit of a farce.

"It's clear that ESW grossly underestimated the time their works would take and failed to factor in adequate time for testing the new water pipes, and it's Havering residents and businesses who continue to pay the price for their failure."

More than 1,900 residents have signed a petition stating residents "no longer had confidence in TfL's assurances" and have "reached a breaking point".

Petitioners are also seeking financial compensation, including a partial council tax refund for each month from September 2025.

Blair Mitchell, ESW's asset management director, said they had "identified additional work was needed to ensure the new water main was completed in the best way possible to protect vital water supplies".

He said: "We expect to be able to complete this work this week, which will allow TfL to do the final work to allow the flyover to partially reopen.

"We are extremely sorry for the continued disruption this causes and understand the frustration and inconvenience it has created for local people."

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