Bam Nuttall Facing £36.5m Repairs Claim Over Guide Busway

Contractor Bam Nuttall is facing a £36.5 million repairs claim over the defects on Cambridgeshire’s Guide Busway.

A council committee will now examine the findings of the report carried out by Capita into defects on the Busway, which Bam Nuttall completed in August 2011.

The Capita report said that the defects represented a breach of contract by Bam Nuttall.

The report recommended that the contractor should repair the defects at an initial cost of £36.5 million, along with paying for the legal fees.

Among the main defects found by Capita in its latest report were: steps developing at the joints of the guideway’s ladders, concrete breaking along the guideway and moving guideway foundations.

Next week, the council will decide whether it will support a joint approach to the issue, which may see the council negotiate with Bam Nuttall at the same time as beginning legal proceedings.

Repair works to the Busway would be carried out in sections to keep the route open.

The claims have come as part of a long running disagreement between the council and the contractor regarding the Busway, which started five years ago when the contractor handed the Busway over to the council.

The council launched an initial claim for £55 million as they said that Bam Nuttall had handed the project over two years behind schedule.

In 2012, Bam Nuttall issued a counterclaim for £43 million but agreed to pay a £33 million settlement the following year. The original contract for the work to be carried out by Bam Nuttall was valued at £83.9m.

Around £126 million had been budgeted to pay for the whole Busway project including construction and other costs such as land acquisitions.

After Bam Nuttall agreed to pay the settlement, the council said the cost of the scheme had risen to almost £152m, largely because of legal fees incurred fighting the case.