Government and transport authorities are expecting exceptionally large numbers of people to travel into London over the next week as people look to pay their respects to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as the city prepares for her State Funeral on Monday 19 September.
The Government is working with the Royal Household, the Metropolitan Police, the Armed Forces, Transport for London and local authorities to manage access to the area around Buckingham Palace and Parliament during the Mourning Period and the State Funeral.
There is an increased risk of delays to journeys on the London transport and road networks, during this period, which is expected to last until Tuesday 20 September, when the Mourning Period officially ends.
Areas and stations that are likely to be particularly busy include: Westminster, Charing Cross, Piccadilly, Embankment, Victoria, Waterloo, St James's Park, Lancaster Gate, Hyde Park Corner and Marble Arch. The Construction Leadership Council met today with Transport for London to discuss how the construction industry can continue to operate whilst minimising the risk of disruption.
Any construction industry organisations working within Central London – or outside of Central London but in the immediate vicinity of core transport network links – should consider the following principles over the next ten days:
Within the Westminster, Victoria and Green Park areas we are likely to see greater congestion on road networks and from pedestrian traffic between now and Tuesday 20 September.
Projects working within this area should be liaising closely with local government representatives from Westminster Council and from Transport for London to understand what work it is appropriate to carry out during this period.
Use a common-sense approach to ensure that you are operating respectfully during this period; and that you are aware of any planned events or memorial services in your local area. As an industry, we must endeavour to avoid any disruption of planned services or events, while ensuring that all safety critical works are able to continue. Consider staggering the start and end times of work on site to ensure that staff are able to travel outside of peak hours. Demand for use of the Underground network is likely to be particularly heavy during this period. Minimise road movements of freight over the next week. Freight guidance is likely to change regularly as road closures are introduced at short notice for specific events or movements – and so we would ask all haulage operators and construction projects to keep a careful eye on Transport for London guidance and do what they can to minimise road movements of freight over the next week.
