Crossrail for conveyancers

Practical Law UK Legal Update 8-382-8418 (Approx. 5 pages)

Crossrail for conveyancers

by Andrew Campbell, Clarke Wilmott

Introduction

The Crossrail Act 2008 (CA 2008) received Royal Assent on 22 July 2008. The CA 2008 makes provision for the:

Authorisation of the works necessary to build Crossrail.
Acquisition of land and interests in land necessary for those works.
Establishment of a planning and heritage regime for the works.

Crossrail is currently expected to be operational in 2018. Enabling works will take place in 2009 and main construction works will start in 2010. It is planned that construction will be completed in 2017, with the railway being commissioned during 2018. For more details, see note, Background.

Implications for conveyancers

Crossrail will have major consequences for conveyancers and property owners and occupiers.

Some properties may be permanently blighted by their proximity to Crossrail. On the other hand, some properties may, in the longer term, benefit from the improved transport infrastructure. Many properties may also be temporarily (but possibly for several years) disadvantaged by the Crossrail construction works.

Anyone acting for a potential buyer, tenant or lender in any of the 19 affected areas (see Box, Local authorities affected by Crossrail) needs to be aware of the proposals and to check whether or not the property in question may be affected, directly or indirectly, by Crossrail. What you need tell your client depends in large measure on:

The nature of the client.
What they intend to do with the property.
How close the property is to the Crossrail route and the construction accesses to it.

Local authority search - what to look for

Question 3.5: within 200 metres of the centreline

Question 3.5 in the local authority search asks:

Is the property (or will it be) within 200 metres of the centre line of a proposed railway, tramway, light railway or monorail?

The answer to this question will reveal whether or not the property is very close to or part of the land used for Crossrail.

However, experience of the construction of the Channel Tunnel railway lines in the 1980s, indicates that most clients will expect to be told about Crossrail even if their property is more than 200 metres from the centreline. The noise, dirt and general disruption from the construction traffic will clearly have a great impact on properties much further away than 200 metres.

Question 3.11: compulsory purchase

Question 3.11 in the local authority search asks:

Has any enforceable order or decision been made to compulsorily purchase or acquire the property?

Obviously a great many properties will be compulsorily purchased. Remember, however, that despite the fact that properties are now clearly earmarked for compulsory purchase for the Crossrail project, the answer to Question 3.11 may not reveal the fact unless and until a compulsory purchase order is actually made. The Crossrail scheme is entering the detailed design phase, part of which involves identifying land that will be subject to acquisition. This identification phase is not yet complete. Some of the 19 local authorities involved may routinely provide more information when responding to searches. Most will not, so conveyancers need to be particularly diligent about this.

If you think the property may be affected by the Crossrail project, you may want to ask the seller an additional pre-contract enquiry along the lines of:

Have you (or to your knowledge any predecessor) received any notices or other written communications from anyone in connection with the proposed railway known as "Crossrail" or have any reason to expect that the property may be affected either by the Crossrail construction works or by the operation of the railway after construction has finished?

Copies of the detailed plans that form part of the Crossrail Act 2008 are available on-line on the Crossrail website. For example see:

Greater London: City of Westminster Plan for a copy of the plan showing where the tunnels will run under Hannover Square in London's West End.
It is apparent from this plan, that there will be two tunnels, some distance apart. This raises the question for local search purposes what will constitute the centre-line and replies to Question 3.5 should be considered carefully in the light of this.
Crossrail Bill supporting documents: Consolidated plans for a copy of the consolidated plans referred to in the Crossrail Act.
Key Plans 1, 2 and 3 show which plans cover which areas.

Further information

The Crossrail website contains links to various sources of property related information, including the Crossrail Environmental Statement and Information Papers.

Under the "Safeguarding" section of the Crossrail website, there is a search facility, that will report on the location of specific postcodes in relation to the Crossrail safeguarded limits of land (within which lies land that could be subject to Crossrail proposals).

The Crossrail Public and Safeguarding Helpdesks are able to answer enquiries on implications for specific property and development arising from the Crossrail proposals:

By phone:

Public Helpdesk (24 Hours): 0845 602 3813
Safeguarding Helpdesk: 020 3023 9100

By fax: 020 3023 9101

By email:

By post:

Cross London Rail Links
6th Floor
Portland House 
Bressenden Place 
London SW1E 5BH

Background

In October 2007 the Government announced that it would meet the funding costs of the Crossrail proposal. The Crossrail Act 2008 received Royal Assent on 22nd July 2008. The Crossrail link will cost more than £16 billion. It is currently expected to be operational in 2017. Enabling works will take place next year and main construction works will start in 2010.

This is one of the largest railway construction projects in England since World War II and will provide an east-west rail link right across London between Maidenhead in Berkshire and Shenfield in Essex and Abbey Wood in the London Borough of Bexley. The central part, through City of Westminster, Camden, Islington, City of London, Tower Hamlets, Newham and Greenwich, will run underground. New stations will be built at Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, Liverpool Street, Whitechapel and the Isle of Dogs.

The Crossrail website has more details of the project together with a useful map showing the proposed route and the 19 local authorities through whose areas the route runs, details of which are set out below.

Local authorities affected by Crossrail

Barking & Dagenham	City of London	Havering	Newham	Tower Hamlets
Bexley	Ealing	Hillingdon	Redbridge	Westminster
Brentwood	Greenwich	Islington	South Bucks	Windsor & Maidenhead
Camden	Hammersmith & Fulham	Kensington & Chelsea	Slough

Crossrail for conveyancers | Practical Law