• Chase to a view
THE Docklands Light Railway, whose trains have buses running behind them in case they break down, has acquired a new master. He is Sir Peter Levene, who made his name as the buyer for the Ministry of Defence — standing up to such major suppliers as the General Electric Com- pany, over airborne radar and seaborne torpedos which needed more time and money but did not quite work. The adv- anced technology of the Docklands railway is GEC's, too. I suspect that the change has been influenced by the developers of'Can- ary Wharf, who might find their property easier to let if the tenants could be sure of getting there. The hazards are various. Chase Manhattan Bank was tempted to move to Canary Wharf, and a high- powered reconnaissance party set out. At its head was Willard C. Butcher, Chase's chairman, on a visit from New York. Vast cars took them to the railway's City termi- nus. It was, as usual, unstaffed, but a train was ready to start, so the bankers got on it. Away they bowled on their excursion — until they were asked for their tickets. They could show none, but genially prof- fered money, which, on that automated line, is not accepted. `Gerrorf,' Mr Butcher was told. They got off. They were then lost, in some unfamiliar part of the East End, where (as they came to realise) few taxi-drivers go. They never got to the docks, but they took ages to get back to the City. Chase moved to Hammersmith.
Previous page
