Commenting Tom said, “This is welcoming news, as at last, this issue seems to be moving forward. The Council conducted a survey in 2014 that found 84 per cent of respondents supported the plans to extend the tram to Sutton. The proposed extension is predicted to bring major economic and social benefits to south London.”
Work continues into the feasibility and funding in the relevant boroughs, Sutton and Merton. They have identified around £50m of local funding. However, there remains a shortfall to be addressed by looking at the scheme’s scope, value engineering and increasing the local contribution towards the development.
The Council are also looking into alternative schemes such as TramPower, a privately-funded tram scheme, the developers of which claim could be implemented at no cost to the public purse.