Zabeth Line central core

new solutions to London’s critical challenges.

“Yes, it’s late. And yes, it’s over budget. But London is getting a magnificent piece of public transport infrastructure that will blow Londoners away and change the mental geography of east-west city travel forever,”

“The Elizabeth Line has been decades in the planning, 14 years in construction, and has brought huge supply chain benefits across the country, demonstrating how public transport investment in London doesn’t just boost the city but the whole UK.”

The May 24 opening, which TfL cautions is subject to final safety approvals, will deliver trains every five minutes 0630-2300 MondaySaturday between Paddington and Abbey Wood (south-east London).

“We are using these final few weeks to continue to build up reliability,” said Commissioner for Transport for London Andy Byford.

“The opening day is set to be a truly historic moment for the capital and the UK, and we look forward to showcasing a simply stunning addition to our network.”

The Elizabeth Line will initially operate as three separate railways. At first, passengers must change at each end (or Liverpool Street for the Shenfield line) to connect with other destinations, while work

Passengers gather on the Elizabeth Line platforms at London Paddington during a trial operations exercise on March 13. This is soon to become a routine sight, once services commence on the route’s central section between here and Abbey Wood from May 24. continues in engineering hours and Sundays to allow testing and software updates.

These are in preparation for more intensive services from the autumn (the second stage), when trains from Reading, Heathrow and Shenfield will run direct through the central tunnels to give a peak frequency of 22 trains per hour.

Of the ten new stations built as part of the project (and 31 upgraded), Bond Street will not open on May 24 because fitting out is incomplete. TfL said that “the station continues to make good progress” and will open “later this year”.

An 11th station will be added at Old Oak Common to connect with HS2, when it opens in 2029.

The project has entailed 13 miles of twin-bore tunnels with a 6.2metre diameter, to allow emergency evacuation through the trains’ side doors. The longest tunnel is 9.6 miles (central core) with two shorter tunnels at the eastern end, including one under the Thames.

All Reading/HeathrowPaddington and ShenfieldLiverpool Street trains, currently operating as TfL Rail, will be rebranded Elizabeth Line.

For a feature on the history of Crossrail and full coverage on its opening, see RAIL 958.