Crossrail – a progress update

TfL should identify the skills and individuals it needs to retain to complete the programme, and those it thinks it will need to retain to run the Elizabeth line effectively once in service.

Crossrail Ltd should work with RfLi to set out a clear plan for handing the Elizabeth line over to RfLi. The plan should include what work is being transferred into operational testing, what work is being deferred until the Elizabeth line is in service and who is responsible for it, and a process to monitor and report on progress of these tasks, including how much it has cost to complete the railway.

TfL and the Department should set out a benefits realisation strategy and plan for the Elizabeth line which they update over time. This should: • set out clearly the intended benefits of the Elizabeth line, including those identified during construction and a way of identifying other benefits not originally identified in the business case. • bring together the work they have already done on benefits in one place. • set out how benefits will be monitored and measured over time. • identify who is responsible for delivering different benefits, and where this is another organisation, who is responsible for influencing that organisation. • assess the risks to achieving benefits and the steps TfL and the Department can take to mitigate them. • set out governance arrangements for the strategy, including how benefits management will be included in TfL’s corporate management information to ensure a strong focus on benefits beyond the delivery phase of the programme.

The Department and TfL should examine the types of benefits realised by the Crossrail programme and Elizabeth line, and those benefits expected but not achieved, and take account of their learnings in the business cases and benefits strategies for other major transport programmes.