Basil Mott - Mott, Hay and Anderson

Mott, Hay and Anderson

1n 1902, Mott formed what turned out to be a lifelong partnership with another protégé of Baker's, David Hay. Subsequently, the partnership of Mott and Hay (now Mott MacDonald) worked on extending the Central London Railway, the building of escalators in London Underground and the construction of the Tyne and Southwark bridges. It also designed the underpinning required to stabilize Clifford's Tower in York.

During the first world war, Basil Mott visited France and India, advising the government on solving engineering problems. He was created a Companion of the Bath (CB) in 1918 in recognition of these services.

The Mersey Tunnel, which he worked on between 1922 and 1934, is his most well-known work. From the outset, it was designed on a large scale; it is still the longest, widest road tunnel in Great Britain. Basil Mott was Engineer for the works, in association with J. A. Brodie, Engineer for the City of Liverpool. His partnership (by then named Mott, Hay and Anderson) designed and supervised the construction of the Mersey Tunnel in its entirety.

In 1924, he was elected President of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

Basil Mott's other post-WW1 works include the extension to Morden of the Northern Line, the enlargement of the original C&SLR tunnels from 10' 6" to 11' 8" (using a tunnelling shield which could be worked at night but through which trains could drive during the day), the Jubilee Bridge and work on the Newport Lifting Bridge.

In 1930, aged 71, he gave evidence to a British government inquiry on the engineering aspects of a proposed Channel Tunnel (which was not built, though Mott, Hay and Anderson designed the bulk of the successful scheme for Channel Tunnel half a century later). In the same year he was created a baronet.

In May 1932 he became a Fellow of the Royal Society—a rare honour for a civil engineer.

He died on 7 September 1938, in London. The baronetcy is currently held by his grandson, John Mott.