• SOME in the Lismore Circus part of Gospel Oak will be aware of the intolerable noise created by defective railway lines. And that it took nearly two years for National Rail to deal with the problem.

Some will also know that the delay was due to National Rail having to get permission from “stake­holders” to close the line while the work was carried out.

Near Lismore Circus is Bacton Tower, a 1970s tower block. It has an additional ground and first floor skirt, added in the 1990s, comprising council admin offices, a concierge area and tenants’ association rooms.

People passing the tower block will notice a large crack in the side of this building. Passers-by and residents of the building need not be alarmed as it is under continuous monitoring by the Camden engineers.

The council has wanted to dig a trench beside the building to inspect the foundations for over a year. Unfortunately the intended inspection trench is approximately three to four metres from the rail tunnel beneath Lismore Circus.

For health and safety reasons National Rail is insisting the railway lines must be closed before the trench can be dug. To do this they are in negotiations with their “stakeholders”. In the meantime the crack gets wider.

LESLIE DAWES
Bacton Tower resident