A new deal has been struck over how much Transport for London pays out to Greenwich Council over the Silvertown Tunnel.

Last year, a group of “at least 12” councillors backed an extraordinary call-in measure to pressure the council to ask TfL for extra cash because of the potential damage the £1 billion tunnel would bring.

The original deal secured £349K for neighbourhood enhancements, part of a wider £500k package, but was thrown out by councillors who said more could be sought.

Cllr Stephen Brain, who called in the deal for further scrutiny in May last year, said at the time: “Really the money is not enough, it’s a pitiful amount. The next step should be to go back to Transport for London before we sign it.”

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Now, nearly a year later, fresh figures have been revealed showing what the council has managed to negotiate.

The council has got TfL to up the original £349k offer to £700k, a 100 per cent increase on the original deal.

Other changes include four school crossing patrols and agreements on the scope of the noise barriers – almost double along the A102.

In total, officers have got TfL to increase its local deal from £500k to £889,000.

Officers said in a new report: “The Local Legal Agreement proposed does more than rebalance the agreement within the ‘financial envelope’ previously offered by TfL – it expands it significantly.

“It also secures a range of important physical measures on the ground, in place of much less well defined funds in the previous draft.”

The cash will be spent on several improvements, including:

  • £50k for improvements on the Westcombe Park station bridge and ramp
  • £250k for improvements in Farmdale Road including resurfacing, greening and new footpaths, and £75k on screenings along the road
  • £150k on a pocket park in Horn Lane
  • £100k pn a pocket park in Tunnel Avenue pocket park
  • £50k revamping the Siebert Road underpass, including new lighting.

Officers said in their report: “Overall the proposed Local Legal Agreement offers a significantly better local agreement. It represents a 77 per cent increase in direct financial contributions from TfL, for measures covered by the sub-committee’s comments.

“The agreement will also secures other valuable schemes which will be delivered directly by TfL, so are not included in the figures above but will provide significant value to the council.”