Heathrow Hub
How airport could be UK's new rail heart
HEATHROW Airport is aiming to be a through station for passengers in the future - and not just those who travel by air.
According to Head of Surface Access Chris Joyce, forthcoming rail developments such as Crossrail and HS2 present an opportunity for the airport to be “at the heart of the rail network”.
“It isn’t just about the direct connections that Crossrail brings. At Farringdon, there is an opportunity to connect with Thameslink, and at Liverpool Street to the East, putting places like Norwich within three hours of Heathrow,” he told delegates at the Policy Forum for London conference dedicated to Crossrail and Crossrail 2.
He added: “This isn’t just about connecting London. This is about connecting the whole of the UK.
“We also have a great opportunity with Old Oak Common, which won’t just be a gateway into London but a gateway to Heathrow, with a tenminute journey time, transforming journey times to cities in the Midlands and the North.”
At present, it takes around three and a half hours to travel to Heathrow from Manchester by rail, with Joyce predicting a 50% reduction in travelling times once HS2 is completed.
Nor has Joyce ruled out a possible connection to Crossrail 2 in the future: “In terms of Crossrail 2, that feeds back into the debate about southern rail access. What the right solution is I don’t know at this stage, and therefore we might be a part of it and an enabler for it, helping to release capacity
around Waterloo. But even if it isn’t a direct service to the airport, there are certainly opportunities to connect in with Crossrail 2.”
Heathrow contributed £70 million towards the construction of the Elizabeth Line (Crossrail), which has a spur to the airport.
Joyce also dismissed an idea that Heathrow Express could be made redundant once Elizabeth Line services begin to serve the airport, suggesting that instead it would offer a complimentary service to the existing Piccadilly Line and Express connections.
“We know that business customers value the simplicity and speed Heathrow Express brings. And we know from examples around the world - such as in Oslo where stopping services work very well beside express services and cater for different markets. This actually gives passengers more choice,” he added.
Crossrail fares to the airport are set to be announced in January 2018, but it seems Heathrow is being left in the dark.
“At the moment, we know as much as anyone else around what charges are going to exist,” said Joyce.