Lining up
THE Crossrail line which will run through parts of west London will be named in honour of The Queen.
London mayor Boris Johnson revealed the new name, the Elizabeth Line, and new purple roundel on Tuesday (February 23) as Her Majesty visited the under-construction Crossrail station at Bond Street.
The Elizabeth Line will deliver a direct connection between all of London’s main employment centres, linking Heathrow with Paddington, the West End, the City and Canary Wharf. It will stop at West Drayton, Hayes & Harlington, Southall, Hanwell, West Ealing, Ealing Broadway and Acton Main Line.
During her visit to Bond Street station, The Queen was presented with a commemorative Elizabeth roundel, and met a wide range of people involved in the construction of Crossrail, Europe’s largest infrastructure project.
This included apprentices working on building the railway, engineers fitting out the station and drivers of the trains that will serve the line.
Speaking afterwards Mr Johnson, also MP for Uxbridge and South Ruislip said: “Crossrail is already proving a huge success for the UK economy, and as we move closer to bringing this transformative new railway into service, I think it’s truly wonderful that such a significant line for our capital, will carry such a significant name from our country.
“As well as radically improving travel right across our city, the Elizabeth Line will provide a lasting tribute to our longest serving monarch.”
The naming of the railway is the latest in a longheld association between the Royal family and London’s Transport network.
Her Majesty, who was wearing an outfit to match the colour of the new purple line, became the first reigning monarch to travel on the London Underground in 1969, when she opened the Victoria Line service.
And in 1977, the Jubilee line was officially opened by HRH the Prince of Wales and was named to mark 25 years since Her Majesty’s accession to the throne. In the same year, Her Majesty opened Heathrow Central station (Terminals 1 2 3) on the Piccadilly line.
The railway’s services are expected to start in May next year, with a full service running from the end of December 2017.