Lib Dems push for station improvements before new Arsenal Stadium opens (Islington Liberal Democrats)

Islington Liberal Democrats <Islington_ld@cix.co.uk>

Lib Dems push for station improvements before new Arsenal Stadium opens

August 8, 2004 12:00 PM

Liberal Democrat campaigners are urging London Underground bosses to ensure that improvements to Holloway Road and Arsenal tube stations are ready in time for the new Arsenal Stadium's opening in summer 2006.

As part of the Labour government's Public Private Partnership (PPP) for London's tube, Arsenal station is not scheduled for modernisation works until 2007 while the scheduled works at Holloway Road, including new lifts, have been delayed until 2007 despite a target completion date of next year.

Leading Liberal Democrat councillors took London Underground's Managing Director, Tim O'Toole, on a fact-finding mission around Islington at the beginning of August to go through the Council's transport concerns for the new stadium opening.

Islington Council has secured funding from Arsenal FC for improvements to Holloway Road station if Transport for London cannot afford all the works required. Liberal Democrats have also expressed concern about traffic on the A1 (Holloway Road) being disrupted by the volume of spectators on match days. They are calling on London Underground to look at a new station entrance opposite the existing one at Holloway Road station or a tunnel direct to the new Arsenal stadium.

Liberal Democrat councillor Bridget Fox, the Council's Executive Member for Sustainability, said:

"The new stadium will have capacity for 60,000 people and local tube stations need to be ready to deal with this massive rise on current numbers.

"The planned transport improvements play a key part in the Council's work on regenerating the area around the stadium. So the current timetable for planned improvement works at Holloway Road station is too late. The Council has already secured funds to help with the costs of improving Holloway Road station if London Underground cannot stump up the full amount required.

"Liberal Democrats are keeping up the pressure on Underground chiefs for the works to be brought forward and a decision is awaited."

Councillor Laura Willoughby, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Islington North and Executive Member for Sport, said:

"If Holloway Road station cannot be upgraded in time for the stadium opening date, there are real concerns about the existing public transport network's ability to meet the demands placed upon it on match days.

"But it isn't just on match days that there could be problems with capacity. The large amount of new housing will mean thousands of new passengers every day locally and the fact is the existing stations will not cope.

"The Council has done its bit to make the new Arsenal Stadium a reality. Now London Underground must do its bit to make the stadium the massive success it deserves to be."

Further Information

Under the Labour government's Public-Private Partnership for London's Underground, three infrastructure companies are responsible for carrying out all the maintenance and improvement works to the whole underground network.