Health and Safety Executive gives London Underground two-week deadline to review glazing installation.
London underground could face a multimillion-pound bill after demands by safety officials that it replace toughened-glass panels on the Jubilee Line Extension.

The Health and Safety Executive has given London Underground two weeks to come up with proposals to install laminated glass at stations, because it believes toughened glass is not safe enough.

The stations involved include the Foster and Partners-designed Canary Wharf and Chris Wilkinson Architects' Stratford.

The HSE has raised concerns about the safety of the public after a glass panel at Stratford fell to the ground and shattered. London Underground has since put up netting. It has also done this around some glazing at Canary Wharf.

We’ve told the LU that the toughened glass at JLE stations will have to be replaced

HSE spokesperson

An HSE spokesperson said: "We've told London Underground that the toughened glass at JLE stations will have to be replaced with laminated glass." London Underground said it was holding talks with the HSE and would put forward proposals to allay safety fears.

Ian Goldsmith, an architect in London Underground's engineering directorate, said: "We have been asked by the HSE to look at all 11 stations on the Jubilee Line Extension with a view to ensuring that the toughened glass used does not pose a risk to the public.

"No date for our next meeting with the HSE has yet been set. The stations at Stratford and Canary Wharf are safe where netting has been used as a temporary measure." The HSE spokesperson added: "It is the sheer volume of glass involved that has led the inspectorate to demand that this work is carried out. It is an extra safety measure designed to prevent injury to a member of the public." The HSE has not used its statutory powers to ensure that its requests are met. The spokesperson said: "We've discussed the matter with London Underground and are confident the matter can be resolved on a management basis, without the use of prohibition orders or improvement notices. A meeting has been scheduled to take place within the next two weeks, when HSE officials expect to be told when the work will be carried out." The bill for replacing the toughened glass with laminated glass could run into millions, say engineering specialists.