Crossrail says M&E issues will not derail Paddington completion

Crossrail has insisted that its new station at Paddington – being built by a Costain Skanska joint venture – will open on time despite the pair having to fix a series of M&E problems. 

Crossrail confirmed to Building that it flagged concerns about the work with the joint venture earlier this year and that remedial work at the £150m station is now under way.

One source told Building this week that the station is behind schedule and that contractors face a race against time to complete all the testing and safety checks ahead of completion. The scheme has been hit by a series of problems around the design of the corridors and tunnels through which cabling needs to run. “There are loads of changes,” the source added. “There’s no slack in the timeline because of all the testing and safety checks they need to do.”

But a Crossrail spokesperson said the station will be finished next summer: “Crossrail raised concerns about the quality of the M&E works at Paddington by station contractor Costain Skanska Joint Venture (CSJV) earlier this year.

“CSJV subsequently addressed these concerns and recommenced M&E installation. CSJV’s contract to deliver Paddington station is scheduled to complete as planned in August 2018.”

He added that the station will open in December next year when services on Crossrail – now renamed the Elizabeth line – will begin.

The station, which has been designed by architect Weston Williamson, is one of the key stations on the east-west London route as it is the main starting point in west London for passengers wanting to use the new rail service.

The Costain Skanska team won the deal back in 2011 and the station is being built under Eastbourne Terrace which runs adjacent to the main Paddington station.

Costain and Skanska both declined to comment.