Mayor of London Ken Livingstone has issued a statutory direction to Transport for London (TfL) and the London Development Agency (LDA) to do everything necessary to proceed with all early preparations for the London Games in 2012. The direction by the Mayor comes as the LDA announces the selected contractor (J Murphy & Sons Limited) to construct twelve kilometres of tunnels to replace the overhead power lines that currently cross the Lower Lea Valley.

The two tunnels will be 20 metres underground, one at 2.5m and the other 4m in diameter. The larger 4m tunnel is on the same scale as a London tube tunnel and will have its own monorail running down the centre for inspection and servicing.

Announcing the selected contractor for the power lines tunnel, newly-appointed chair of the LDA's Olympic Delivery Committee Lord Swraj Paul said: "Undergrounding these power lines is a huge project, creating tunnels equivalent to more than half the length of the Victoria Line. It will completely transform the feel of this area and underlines the tremendous impact that hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games will have on east London. Over the coming months, the LDA will continue working on the tendering process for other substantial contracts as it sets the foundations for the 2012 Games."

The £70 million award (which is subject to finalising the contract) is the first stage in a £200 million project that will see more than 50 huge pylons - some higher than City Hall and which currently scar the skyline - removed from the area. Their removal will free up over 40 hectares of land for development and therefore will be a crucial step in creating the Olympic Park and preparing the Lower Lea Valley for the 2012 Games.

The direction outlines further projects that TfL and the LDA must deliver which include:

• Site clearance, demolition and decontamination
• Ensuring important Olympic input into ongoing developments on London Underground, DLR and national rail
• Planning for upgrades to North London Line services, including increased frequency and train sizes
• Planning for improvements at West Ham station, to make it better able to meet the demands of major events.

The main purpose of the Mayor-s direction is to allow both TfL and the LDA to begin crucial work on preparations for the Games prior to the establishment of the Olympic Delivery Authority.

The Mayor said: "My direction to TfL and the LDA paves the way for them to deliver all the early work to prepare for the Olympic and Paralympic Games and will ensure this work is fully underway well in advance of the establishment of the Olympic Delivery Authority. Together with the Government-s reassurance that guarantees all the funding for these projects we are sending out a strong message that the work to prepare for a truly exceptional Games in London in 2012 has begun."

These projects will be delivered by TfL and the LDA under the supervision of an Olympic Delivery Group, ensuring a direct line into the Olympic Board which supervises the overall Olympic project and on which the Mayor sits. The approach has been agreed with all the stakeholders on the Olympic Board: the Department for Culture, Media & Sport, the British Olympic Association and the organising committee for the London 2012 Games (LOCOG). This contribution from the GLA Group in these early stages is critical to delivery of the Games.

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