Transport for London has declined to reveal how much the Gallows Corner debacle has cost the taxpayer in its official response to Freedom of Information requests from Havering MP, Julia Lopez. The Hornchurch & Upminster representative sent a litany of questions to Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, after her constituents and local businesses suffered months of delays and congestion from the delayed flyover replacement. The Mayor sent the questions to TfL to front, including how much Londoners would need to pay for the cost of rerouting a major water main.
While TfL confirmed that it must fund the costs itself rather from central government coffers, it has withheld the current projected cost on commercial confidentiality grounds. Its published explanation says disclosure could undermine ongoing negotiations amid suspicions that the cost of replacing the water main could now eclipse the original budget to replace the flyover. A separate response disclosed an original forecast of £67.3 million for the overall project but withheld the latest forecast that did not take into account the overrun and delays.
Mrs Lopez said the responses provided little reassurance about the financial consequences of the prolonged works, and the fact that public funds could have been spent instead on other much-needed transport investments across Havering.
The information blackout come against a backdrop of TfL financial mismanagement. Over the summer it emerged London's transport body was the most indebted local authority organisation in the UK in 2025, holding almost £14 billion of debt, while rows rage on over how to fund other major transport projects in the capital, from the Hammersmith Bridge repairs to station upgrades in outer London.
Mrs Lopez said:
“The reopening of Gallows Corner is a huge relief for everyone who endured the disruption. But the financial consequences of this project will last beyond the removal of the roadworks.
“These responses tell us who must pick up costs above the Government’s contribution, but leave us in the dark about the size of the bill. TfL must cover those costs from its own resources, at a time when its finances are already stretched.
“That matters to communities like ours. Outer London needs investment in better transport links and accessible stations. Any additional money absorbed by Gallows Corner puts further pressure on the funds available for those improvements.
“TfL says commercial negotiations prevent it from sharing the figures for now. That leaves Londoners unable to judge the full financial impact of what has happened, or what it could mean for the transport investment their communities need.”
