Key Points
- Julia Lopez MP has written to the Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan, asking for full details of the costs, decisions and delays linked to the Gallows Corner flyover project.
- The project was originally due to finish by September 2025 but remains unfinished.
- Work to repair and test the replacement water main is still continuing before the site can be handed back to Transport for London.
- Mrs Lopez says residents and businesses in Havering have faced more than a year of disruption.
- She has asked for the original and projected costs of replacing the water main, along with the timetable agreed with Essex & Suffolk Water.
- She is also seeking clarity on why Transport for London decided the main needed replacing, whether extra funding has been requested from central government, and when the flyover will reopen.
- The MP has requested that some of her questions be treated as a Freedom of Information request.
- She has raised concerns about whether the cost of the new pipe could rival or exceed the cost of replacing the flyover itself.
- Mrs Lopez has also asked what support the Mayor has offered to Havering Council and affected businesses, including possible business rates relief.
- The letter follows confirmation that Essex & Suffolk Water had not originally planned to replace the water main but did so at TfL’s request.
Hornchurch (East London Times) July 20, 2026 – MP Julia Lopez has asked Mayor of London Sir Sadiq Khan to provide full details of the costs, decisions and delays surrounding the long-running Gallows Corner flyover scheme, as pressure mounts over the impact on residents and businesses in Havering. As reported by the covering news source, she says more than a year of disruption has left people waiting for clear answers on how the project has been managed and why it has taken so long to complete.
What has Julia Lopez asked the Mayor to explain?
Mrs Lopez’s letter focuses on the financial and administrative side of the project. She has asked for the original and projected cost of replacing the water main beneath Gallows Corner, the timetable agreed with Essex & Suffolk Water, and the reasons Transport for London decided the main needed to be replaced.
She has also asked for questions about decision-making, project management and the use of public money to be treated as a Freedom of Information request.
As reported by Julia Lopez MP, the length of the delays and the absence of firm answers have eroded public confidence in TfL’s handling of the scheme.
Her letter also seeks clarity on whether TfL has asked the Department for Transport for additional funding, what effect the Government’s previous pause on capital funding had on the timetable, and when the flyover is now expected to reopen.
Why is the water main central to the dispute?
The dispute has been sharpened by confirmation that Essex & Suffolk Water had not originally intended to replace the water main but carried out the work at TfL’s request.
Mrs Lopez says that raises questions about whether the cost of the new pipe could now rival or even exceed the cost of replacing the flyover itself, and whether that money could have been used elsewhere in Havering or across London.
That line of questioning places the project under wider scrutiny because the water main work has become a major part of the delay.
The site cannot be handed back to TfL until the repair and testing work is completed, which means the roadworks continue to affect local travel, trade and daily routines. The original completion target of September 2025 has now passed, leaving the scheme still unfinished.
What has the MP said about residents and businesses?
Julia Lopez has argued that residents and businesses have endured severe disruption, wasted time and financial hardship for more than a year. In her comments, she said the public deserves clear answers about how the scheme has been managed and how much money has been spent.
She also said her recent meetings had raised serious questions about TfL’s planning, the choice to replace the water main and whether the original timetable and budget were ever realistic.
As reported by Mrs Lopez, the Mayor has sole political responsibility for TfL but has shown “zero interest” in Gallows Corner and the impact on residents. She said it was time he gave local businesses and residents the attention the issue deserves and considered what he could do to support them.
The MP also urged lessons to be applied to future schemes, including the planned replacement of the A13 Lodge Avenue flyover, so another community does not face similar uncertainty.
What support is being sought for Havering?
The letter asks what support the Mayor has offered to Havering Council and to businesses affected by the works. Mrs Lopez specifically wants to know whether the Mayor has made representations to the Valuation Office Agency about business rates relief.
That request suggests concern that local firms have carried ongoing costs while the works have limited access and reduced footfall.
The questions also point to a broader issue of accountability around major transport projects. Mrs Lopez wants to know whether the Mayor has personally attended or chaired any meetings on Gallows Corner and what action his office has taken to support people affected by the closure.
The focus, in her view, is not only on reopening the flyover but on understanding how the decision-making process unfolded.
How has the project reached this point?
The original plan was for the Gallows Corner scheme to be completed by September 2025, but the work remains incomplete. The latest position is that repair and testing of the replacement water main continue before the site can be returned to TfL.
The delay has now stretched beyond a year, making the project one of the most visible local transport disruptions in Havering.
The combination of roadworks, utility changes and project delays has left residents and traders waiting for a firm end date.
The MP’s concerns suggest that the issue is no longer only about engineering but also about transparency, cost control and communication. With no confirmed reopening date in the letter, uncertainty remains a central part of the story.
Background of the development
Gallows Corner is a major traffic junction in Havering, and the flyover project has become a prolonged local issue because of the scale of disruption and the length of the delays.
The current row centres on the replacement water main beneath the site, which was carried out after Transport for London asked Essex & Suffolk Water to do the work, despite that not being the company’s original plan.
The project has since become a test of how large transport schemes are managed when utility works, funding pressures and deadlines overlap.
For local residents and businesses, the dispute has also become about accountability. Mrs Lopez’s intervention shows that questions about cost, timing and responsibility have not been settled by the ongoing works, and that the project now sits within a wider debate over how TfL handles major infrastructure jobs in busy urban areas.
Prediction
For residents and businesses in Havering, the immediate effect is likely to be continued frustration until a clear reopening timetable is given.
If the questions raised by Mrs Lopez lead to fuller disclosure from TfL and the Mayor’s office, it could improve trust, but it may also intensify scrutiny over public spending and planning decisions.
The issue may also influence how future transport schemes, including the A13 Lodge Avenue flyover replacement, are designed and communicated to local communities.
