Conservative politicians have accused Sadiq Khan of 'giving up' on the Gallows Corner roundabout after City Hall failed to respond to a series of queries and Freedom of Information (FOI) requests about the delayed reopening. Shadow Cabinet Minister Julia Lopez, MP for Hornchurch and Upminster, filed requests last month seeking details on funding, cost projections, timelines, and support for affected businesses, but has received no direct response.
FOI requests ignored
Public authorities are legally required to respond to FOI requests within 20 working days, but Ms Lopez alleges no contact has been made. The Mayor's office only responded a day after the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) contacted them about this story, and the response to her 14 questions was that they could not 'locate records within the scope of the request.'
The Gallows Corner flyover has been closed since June 23 last year, with refurbishment starting in June 2025 and an original completion date of September. This was extended to April, before the junction partially reopened in May this year. However, Essex and Suffolk Water (ESW) are still working to complete repairs by August, after which TfL can resurface the area.
Businesses suffer
The delays have hit local businesses hard, with traffic build-up on alternative routes deterring customers. Some businesses reported that potential clients stopped using their services altogether. Ms Lopez says she submitted her requests after meetings with transport and water executives revealed tensions over the decision to reroute a major water main at the same time as replacing the ageing flyover.
There are concerns that the water main replacement could cost more than the flyover works, at a cost to TfL and the Department for Transport. Her letter, seen by the LDRS, included questions about original and projected cost estimates for the water main replacement, whether TfL has sought additional funding from the Department for Transport, and the extent of the Mayor's personal involvement in decisions about Gallows Corner.
Politicians demand answers
Ms Lopez has now written to Sir Sadiq again, requesting urgent FOI replies and direct mayoral support for affected businesses and residents. She said: “Residents and businesses have endured more than a year of severe disruption and deserve to know why key decisions were taken on Gallows Corner, what they have cost and who is picking up the bill. The Mayor has sole political responsibility for TfL. He has neither answered nor even acknowledged a Freedom of Information request concerning a major infrastructure project and the use of substantial amounts of public money.”
Susan Hall, leader of the City Hall Conservatives, added: "Khan has given up on Gallows Corner, now barely able to even answer questions submitted to him regarding it. Meanwhile, residents' lives are made misery by congestion and disruption as a result without any answers as to why or for how much longer they will be expected to endure."
Deputy Mayor for Transport Seb Dance wrote to Mrs Lopez apologising for the length of the works, stating that ESW should complete works by the end of August and that 'TfL will confirm an expected reopening date as soon as possible.' However, he said he could not answer any specific questions raised by Mrs Lopez.
Mrs Lopez told the LDRS: "Sadiq Khan has treated the residents and businesses of Havering with contempt when it comes to Gallows Corner. He has not once sent a direct reply to me, even when I was highlighting the pleas for help of businesses going under. He has not answered any of the questions about what has gone wrong. He won't even say whether he has ever held a meeting on Gallows - apparently that information is not held by the GLA."
The Mayor's office has not responded to the LDRS at the time of publication, and TfL has not confirmed a new reopening date for Gallows Corner.
