Recommendation 5

The Department has still not demonstrated that it is embedding lessons learned into its major programmes. This Committee has examined many major transport programmes, such as HS2, Great Western route modernisation and Thameslink, many of which have had significant problems in their delivery. We have told the Department many times that it needs to learn lessons, from Crossrail and from other major transport projects, so that it does not repeat the same mistakes. In our evidence session, the Department told us again about the report it produced with the Infrastructure and Projects Authority, the innovative approach to delivering railway systems in HS2, and its project delivery improvement plan. While these are welcome developments, with the exception of the approach to delivering railway systems on HS2, the Department has not explained to us in practical terms what it is doing differently, nor the real-world impact its changes have had on delivering major programmes. Recommendation: The Department should write to the Committee by the end of November detailing what it has changed in its approach to delivering major programmes with its arms-length bodies, giving examples of tangible improvements or impacts on specific projects where possible. 8 Crossrail: A progress update 1 Schedule risks, cost and funding