Tube closures to continue until next summer

The closures, agreed last week by Transport for London and contractor Tube Lines, should mean upgrade work is completed by the end of May.

But further closures will be needed over the summer for testing and training before the new signalling system becomes operational in the autumn.

Richard Parry, managing director of London Underground, said: "When complete, the upgrade of the Jubilee line will deliver faster and more frequent journeys for Londoners.

"It is hugely frustrating for Londoners, businesses and ourselves that Tube Lines have failed to deliver the upgrade of the Jubilee line by the end of December, the contractual date.

"We regret we have been put in a position where we have to grant these further closures and apologise to passengers for the further disruption. We will do all we can to minimise the impact by providing alternative transport and information for our customers wherever possible."

Tube Lines, based in Westferry Circus, is pleased the closure schedule has been agreed following a meeting between last week, but is unhappy about how it was announced.

A Tube Lines spokeswoman said: "Last Friday LU announced they had granted closures up to April 2010 and we are pleased they have finally confirmed their decision on that.

"We were disappointed this media announcement was the first time we had seen in writing confirmation from LU of those closures we all discussed at that meeting.

"This included closures Tube Lines needs to complete the testing phase of the project and closures London Underground needs to perform its own trial operations and driver training. We now wait on them to make a timely decision on the remaining closures both organisations need to get the job finished.

"London Underground hold the keys to Tube Lines getting access to the track and by delaying their decisions they risk obstructing our ability to work efficiently and ensure a successful outcome. All we ask is that London Underground works with us.

"The travelling public does not benefit from rows between those of us delivering the upgrade and London Underground."

Tube Lines will learn tomorrow roughly how much funding it can expect for its next tranche of work on the Underground network.

The PPP arbiter publishes his draft guidance indicating what the scope of work required on the Jubilee, Piccadilly and Northern lines for the next seven years will cost.

Tube Lines wants £5.7billion, while TfL have offered £4.1billion. It's likely the figure will fall somewhere between the two.

A final decision from the arbiter is expected at the end of April.