"The cost of the necessary demolition and re-provision of a newly-built Crossrail depot to allow the planned Old Oak and Park Royal regeneration scheme to go ahead could reach £500 million, 'Planning' understands.
"The 25,000-home scheme promoted by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) claims to be the UK;s largest regeneration project, and aims to create accommodation for 65,000 new jobs.
"However, the OPDC was set up last year by then London mayor Boris Johnson despite the fact Crossrail had started building a £142 million depot and rolling stock stabling yard, vital to Crossrail’s operation, in the part of the site envisaged as the commercial heart of the scheme.
"Despite pleas to change the design of the stabling yard and depot prior to its construction in order to incorporate Old Oak’s developing plans, it was built in a way that means it is not able to support development above it.
"Two separate sources familiar with the situation said that a provisional proposal exists for allowing development above the depot without interrupting the operation of Crossrail. It involves relocating half of the rolling stock to a site close to the M25 at West Drayton. This allows the phased closure, demolition and rebuilding of the depot with the necessary structural underpinning and columns to support a development deck above it.
"One source said: 'The bill for this could be as much as half a billion pounds. But we need to know what government and the mayor are going to do about it.'
"The second source confirmed the figure, seen as very rough estimate, had been 'bandied around' in high-level discussions on the issue."
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