Elizabeth Line

The Elizabeth line, moving you across London... faster.

It has been three years, to the day, since the Elizabeth line became fully operational to passengers. 

In those three years it has gone on to become one of the busiest lines in the country, with services running from Reading and Heathrow to Abbey Wood and Shenfield, and has changed how people move in and around the city.

But, the construction of the tunnels, new stations, upgrades to existing stations, new trains, the signalling system and more were not without their issues: Budgets grew and timelines were missed.

So, let's take a look at how this incredible cross-London line came to be.

The beginning.

There had been schemes to create a line to cross London since the early 1900s, all of which were unsuccessful. Many felt that the idea was finished for good, but this was just the catalyst for what would become the Elizabeth line.

In 2005 the Crossrail Bill was submitted to Parliament, gaining Royal Assent in 2008.

Following gaining Royal Assent Crossrail Limited was set up to manage the design and construction of the railway. Between 2008 and 2009 the procurement process kicked in, with contractors being brought aboard, which enabled demolitions to begin and utility services to be diverted. Formal construction began in May 2009.

The stations.

There are 41 stations along the Elizabeth line, 10 of which were created specifically for the line (Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, Liverpool Street, Whitechapel, Canary Wharf, Custom House, Woolwich, and Abbey Wood) while the other 31 stations were upgraded.

All of the Elizabeth line stations are step-free from street to platform, with level boarding to the new stations between Paddington and Abbey Wood, and at Heathrow. The platforms at the new stations have been designed for future growth, with the platforms long enough to accommodate trains with an additional two carriages.

The passageways are wider and flared, improving visibility and safety, with subtle lighting and 'totem' posts give clear directions.

A 'turn up and go' service is available at every station for passengers who require assistance, boarding and alighting from the trains.

The upgraded stations have new lifts and footbridges, new ticket halls, ticket machines, information screens, toilets and waiting rooms. 

All stations are staffed from the first to the last train.

The trains.

The line is serviced by a fleet of 70 nine-car Class 345 trains that were procured especially for the line.

The trains have walk-through carriages that have space for 1,500 passengers, dedicated wheelchair spaces as well as separate spaces for buggies and/or luggage. Each carriage has three sets of double doors allowing for easier boarding.

They have temperature-controlled air-conditioning, CCTV, Wi-Fi, intelligent lighting and are energy efficient. Each carriage also has real-time travel information, covering the entire underground system, for easier journey planning.

The Class 345 trains are housed in two major depots: Old Oak Common Depot, for housing and maintenance, and the Ilford Depot, for stabling and some operations, with additional stabling near the termini.

By the 2030s the fleet will increase to 80 trains, in preparation for the opening of the Old Oak Common railway station alongside High Speed 2.

The difference.

The Elizabeth line has completely changed how people travel across the city. According to the 'Office and Rail Road' the numbers of passengers carried by the Elizabeth line has rapidly increased:

• Fiscal year 2022-23 - 143.1 million passengers
• Fiscal year 2023-24 - 220.3 million passengers
• Fiscal year 2024-25 - 242.9 million passengers

Another reason for the uptake in passenger numbers is the shortened length of time between stations.

• Paddington to Tottenham Court Road: 20 minutes reduced to 4 minutes
• Paddington to Canary Wharf: 34 minutes reduced to 17 minutes
• Paddington to Bond Street: 15 minutes reduced to 3 minutes
• Bond Street to Whitechapel: 24 minutes reduced to 10 minutes
• Whitechapel to Canary Wharf: 13 minutes reduced to 3 minutes
• Canary Wharf to Liverpool Street: 21 minutes reduced to 6 minutes
• Canary Wharf to Heathrow: 55 minutes reduced to 39 minutes
• Abbey Wood to Heathrow: 93 minutes reduced to 52 minutes

Timeline.

• 1919 - An east-west tube railway linking mainline termini is first proposed
• 1943 - The County of London plan revisits the idea
• 1974 - A new cross-London line recommended
• 1989 - New Crossrail plan floated
• 2005 - Crossrail Bill submitted
• 2007 - Project officially approved as 'Crossrail'
• 2008 - The Crossrail Bill gains Royal Assent
• 2009 - Construction begins at Canary Wharf
• 2011 - 8 Tunnel boring machines begin to chew through the London clay
• 2015 - May 31, existing 'metro' service between Liverpool Street and Shenfield transferred from Abellio Greater Anglia to TFL Rail
• 2015 - Tunnelling completed
• 2015 - Installation of railway systems: track, power and signalling
• 2016 - The line is officially called the Elizabeth line
• 2016-2021 - Stations are completed and handed over to TFL
• 2017 - June 22, Class 345 trains start running between Liverpool Street and Shenfield in reduced length format
• 2018 - May 20, existing service between Paddington (main line station) and Heathrow Terminal 4 transferred from Heathrow Connect
• 2018 - Paddington to Heathrow services begin, replacing Heathrow Connect
• 2019 - November 25, the first TFL trains in public service to Reading ran as a soft launch of the service
• 2019 - December 15, most stopping services between Paddington and Reading transferred from Great Western Railway to TFL Rail, operating up to 4 trains per hour
• 2020 - July 30, Class 345 trains start running between Paddington and Heathrow
• 2021 - Trains are trialled on the tracks
• 2022 - May 22, HM Queen Elizabeth II formally opens the line
• 2022 - May 24, services between Paddington and Abbey Wood begin; this section and existing TFL Rail routes rebranded as the Elizabeth line, with up to 12 trains per hour
• 2022 - May 26, Class 345 trains in full length format start running between Liverpool Street and Shenfield
• 2022 - November 6, services begin between Paddington and Shenfield; and between Reading and Abbey Wood; and between Heathrow and Abbey Wood. The services are operated in parallel, sharing the central tunnel
• 2023 - May 21, full route opens, with services between Heathrow and both Abbey Wood and Shenfield; and between Reading and Abbey Wood

Trivia.

• The line was nearly named the Churchill line, after the wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill
• There are 200,000 cast concrete sections in the line’s 42km of tunnels
• Staff were trained using a mock station called West Ilford, at the Tunnelling and Underground Academy in Essex 
• People all over the UK have contributed to the line, with 96% of all contracts going to British companies
• The Elizabeth line is unique on the London Underground in that surface stock trains,  as big as the S stock than run on the Metropolitan and District lines, run in tube tunnels under the Capital, and far out into Berkshire and Essex on the surface