Gerrards Cross



	We are currently working with our construction partner Costain to complete the development of the store as quickly and as safely as possible. As we move closer to this goal, we will be keeping local residents, rail travellers and other interested parties fully informed every step of the way by using this website to provide all the latest news concerning the development. News Release... Thursday 9th October 2008 TESCO TUNNELS AHEAD The building of a new Tesco above a rail line in Gerrards Cross was controversial even before the tunnel over the railway collapsed in July 2005. POLLY MANSER and editor JULIE VOYCE met Costain’s project manager Martin Baughurst for a tour of the site. THE Tesco saga has been the biggest topic of debate in Gerrards Cross for a decade. Project manager Martin Baughurst took us to a viewing platform at the site and spent more than an hour explaining what is currently being done and what will happen next year and beyond. Also with us was Mark Walters, a PR consultant for Tesco, who gave further details. First, for anyone new to Gerrards Cross, Tesco is preparing to rebuild a tunnel over the railway at Gerrards Cross which collapsed on July 1, 2005, while the frame for the new store above it was half-built. Hundreds of train passengers were minutes from disaster when the 25m stretch of tunnel collapsed. A new contractor was appointed and this spring – nearly three years later – work restarted, with Costain literally picking up the pieces. The steel frame of the store has been taken down, and since then there has been much activity, but it is unclear to the onlooker exactly what has been happening. Mr Baughurst explained that workers are currently constructing platforms along the side of the tunnel. These will enable then to hold the weight of cranes which, from February, will lift into place a replacement tunnel for the middle section which collapsed. After that, a new, stronger tunnel will be built on top of the older tunnel. This will take up to a year to complete. So we asked the obvious question – how can we be sure that the old tunnel will not collapse again, given that it is being left in place? Costain’s answer is that the new tunnel will be stiffer, and will be made in one piece, rather than as two sections balanced together. Also, the infill material above it will be much lighter, being only a quarter as heavy as the infill used by the previous developers, Jacksons. “The tunnel is like a brick arch” Mr Baughurst said. “The weight comes in at the top and goes down the side and is distributed into 3,000 piles (foundations columns) along the tunnel. The old structure becomes redundant, so there’s no pressure on it, and the new one is put in as wet concrete.” However, there is still no answer forthcoming as to why the old tunnel collapsed, and why its joint didn’t hold. “We’ve never been asked to investigate why the tunnel collapsed, we’ve only been asked to come up with solutions,” Mr Baughurst said.The bad news for residents is that the construction of the 63-piece middle section will need to be done at night, because of restrictions by Network Rail, which has to consider the safety of train passengers. It will be about as noisy as the dismantling of the steel frame (which led to complaints to environmental health officers and the relocation of several residents, although Tesco was at pains to point out that this was a goodwill gesture on its part), and will take between 30 and 36 nights to complete. The biggest question, of course, is will Network Rail actually allow Tesco to go ahead with the new tunnel, given its previous collapse, and particularly given talk in the rail industry about that line becoming a high-speed route? Mr Baughurst told us: “we’ve already had agreement in principle, and the detailed designs are with them for approval now.” We were also told that Tesco and Costain are committed to bringing the additional infill material to the site by rail, not road, thus avoiding the possibility of more than 2,000 lorry journeys, about which people in Gerrards Cross have been so concerned. But so far, Buckinghamshire County Council (BCC) has refused Tesco permission to do the because, a spokesman said, there is no timetable for the work and Tesco has requested that the planning permission remains valid for three-and-a-half years. Mr Baughurst said he is considering two options, but bringing the infill by rail is preferable and ‘the best option in terms of time, cost, and impact on the environment’. Tesco has launched an appeal against BBC’s refusal of planning permission and this could take up to a year to resolve. It says it has appealed ‘because we think we will win’, according to Tesco spokesman Michael Kissman, although it may put in a new planning application once it gets the go-ahead from Network Rail, because, if the BBC approves it, that route would be quicker. One final surprise: anybody will be able to park in the new 320-place Tesco car park, where parking will be free for two or three hours. Curiously, it would appear this includes customers of the new Waitrose planned for Station Road, whose developers are refusing to provide parking of their own. One imagines this could lead to some very interesting discussions. News Archive: 8th December 2008 - Tesco supports Gerrards Cross Traders Association Christmas Lights Appeal 9th October 2008 - Tesco tunnels ahead 29th February 2008 - The wait is over - Work to start at Tesco Gerrards Cross 10th January 2008 - Tesco updates Council 15th October 2007 - Health Protection Agency confirms no danger posed by IBAA in Gerrards Cross October 2007 - Tesco addresses the Rotary Club of Misbourne Matins 12th September 2007 - Tesco response to Bucks county council development control committee meeting July 2007 - Tesco holds public meeting with residents of Gerrards Cross 16th July 2007 - Tesco recieves agreement from Network Rail for new tunnel design at Gerrards Cross 26th June 2007 - Tesco announces intention to complete Gerrards Cross