Editors Comment
Project, the magazine of the Association for Project Management had an arresting ad in the July 2002 Issue that declared " Projects don't get more challenging". While I really do not spend much time on PM advertising this declaration drew me to read that a UK company called Metronet is about to organize, manage and deliver major improvements to the London UK Underground. Having spent many hours on the London tube while on assignment in London I was interested in what was in the future for one of the oldest and busiest transportation complex in the world today.
Metronet declares that they will be spending some 17 billion BP over the next 30 years on the largest ever metro regeneration scheme that is the upgrade, revitalization and maintenance of two-thirds of the London Underground network. My thoughts went to wondering if they were going to return to the older custom of having a station agent in each tube station. An old and out of date custom but one that brought a personal touch to each London tube station.
The Metronet web site is an interesting read on the goals of the Metronet organization "to deliver a world-class safe and reliable tube for London" A goal that as a former traveler on the Tube is one that I heartily endorse although for the six months that I used the Tube I had very good early morning and evening transportation to outer London where my Project Office was located.
At this early stage in the organization of this massive engineering project there is not much project management planning or description posted but one aspect that is interesting to project management practitioners is that Metronet and the Tube upgrade is to be part of the UK government's Public Private Partnership (PPP) Initiative. Here Metronet Rail SSL and Metronet Rail BCV are "to work in partnership with London underground to achieve a world class transport system".
[ More on this London Underground Project ]
The UK government's definitive report, Successful IT: Modernising Government in Action, is known as the McCartney (reference 1) report after its ministerial sponsor said in 2000: "Government IT projects have too often missed delivery dates, run over budget or failed to fulfill requirements.
Vnunet.com is styled as the "UK technology, news and reviews" web. For more on "why government project go wrong" see the article by Mike Cross on the Vnunet web site at http://www.vnunet.com/Features.
(1) Reference [ PM Library Organizational Audit Reports ]