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Thursday 02 Dec 2004

Up to a million tonnes of material may be moved off the road each year as a result of the building of a new multi-modal recycling centre. The London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham has approved plans for the recycling centre to be built at Old Oak Sidings, Willesden Junction. The site is one of the few sites in London to be located with good connections between road, rail and canal. The plans by Powerday PLC, are being backed by English Welsh & Scottish Railway Ltd (EWS) and British Waterways London.

Mark Bensted, British Waterways London director welcomed the news adding: “This is the perfect use in the perfect location. On top of its road and rail connections, Old Oak Sidings benefits from access to the Grand Union Canal and 26 ‘lock-free’ miles from Camden to Slough. This project will lead to the creation of dozens of waterside collection and distribution points across west London and is probably the biggest opportunity we have had in the last century to establish a modern freight operation on London’s canals.â€�
Michael Crossan, managing director of Powerday said: “We are delighted with this news. This is going to be one of most efficient recycling centres in the UK - something the country desperately needs. The Government, the Mayor of London and London boroughs all have the right policies in place for hitting our targets. This project is about turning good policies into action.�
Gordon Cox, EWS Account Manager Construction and Petroleum, said: "The Willesden Hub has one of London's densest concentrations of railways and there is great capacity here for expanding rail freight. EWS has worked closely with Powerday on its application, and we are pleased that next year reliable and efficient EWS rail freight operations will commence at this new site. The combined road, rail and canal access to Powerday's recycling centre presents a unique opportunity to show just how sustainable transport can work, underlying the importance of rail freight to London."