Engineering news
The case for a new cross-London rail scheme, which would connect south-west and north-east London via a tunnel beneath the heart of the capital, has been put forward by business leaders.
The a £12 billion Crossrail 2 scheme would complement the west-to-east cross-London Crossrail project which is already in construction, and due to become operational in 2018.
Put forward by the London First organisation, the Crossrail 2 scheme envisages a new rail line taking in areas such as Wimbledon, Kingston, Twickenham, Hackney, Islington, Tottenham, Cheshunt and Hertford East.
The rail line would also link up with major London interchanges including Euston, Victoria and Clapham Junction, reducing pressure on congested Tube lines and in some cases cutting journey times by a half.
London First, whose task force has been chaired by former transport secretary Lord Adonis, said that without Crossrail 2 at least £6 billion would need to be spent on incremental improvements to existing Tube and rail infrastructure.
He said: “Crossrail 2 is essential to keep London moving as its population rises by another 1.5 million over the next 20 years and the number of rail journeys into London termini increase dramatically.”
London First chief executive Jo Valentine said: “The UK faces a stark choice: go on investing in London's transport to keep pace with population and jobs growth - or stifle London's future success with bottlenecks.
“And we have to make the decision now. We cannot afford the decades of indecision that delayed getting started on Crossrail 1.”
London mayor Boris Johnson said that the scheme is essential and that there is “no time to lose”.
He said: “Over the next 20 years London's population is forecast to expand to levels that will clog the Tube and rail arteries of our great city if we do not provide more capacity. There is no time to lose and my team will work closely with London First and others on developing plans for this vital railway.”
Bob Crow, general secretary of the RMT transport union, said that we need to “crack on” with the project which will make a difference to many people.
He said: “It is vitally important that we don't waste more time delaying transport infrastructure developments that would make a massive difference for millions of people.
“If we don't crack on now, existing services will reach saturation point by the end of this decade, with stations closed due to overcrowding and trains rammed full at peak times. We are already in that position right now on many parts of the network.
“It is equally important that big business isn't allowed to call the shots on the routes and the timescales for these infrastructure developments.
“They should be built and operated in the interests of all Londoners, not just the wealthy elite.”
London First said that Crossrail 2 could be open in the early 2030s if the construction commences around 2020.