83-586: Crossrail is a railway construction project in London. Crossrail may also refer to: Rail freight companies: Crossrail Crossrail is a completed railway project centred on London. It provides a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system, known as the Elizabeth line , that crosses the capital from suburbs on the west to east and connects two major railway lines terminating in London:
166-631: A competition in January 2012 to name the TBMs, in which over 2,500 entries were received and 10 pairs of names short-listed. After a public vote in February 2012, the first three pairs of names were announced on 13 March and the last pair on 16 August 2013: In September 2012, a gantry supporting a spoil hopper, used to load rail wagons with excavated waste at a construction site near Westbourne Park Underground station , collapsed. It tipped sideways, causing
249-630: A government investigation into blacklisting at Crossrail. Further allegations of blacklisting against Crossrail were made in Parliament in September 2017. In March 2023, a former Crossrail worker made a High Court statement regarding a damages claim against Crossrail, Skanska, Costain, T Clarke and NG Bailey for blacklisting. The case had been settled out of court in December 2021. Electrician Daniel Collins had raised health and safety concerns at
332-441: A new wetland nature reserve ( Wallasea Wetlands ). The project eventually moved seven million tons of earth. Restoration of Connaught Tunnel by filling with concrete foam and reboring, as originally intended, was deemed too great a risk to the structural integrity of the tunnel, and so the docks above were drained to give access to the tunnel roof in order to enlarge its profile. This work took place during 2013. Boring of
415-603: A number of announcements and delays, the government announced in March 2011 that it would electrify the line as far as Bristol Temple Meads. Following delays to the work and a large increase in costs, the Conservative government announced in July 2017 that, for the time being, electrification would only be completed as far as Thingley Junction, 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Chippenham. Electrification as far as Didcot Parkway
498-478: A number of other schemes including a "Thameslink Metro" route enhancement, and the Chelsea–Hackney line. The cost of the east–west scheme including rolling stock was estimated at £885 million. In 1991, a private bill was submitted to Parliament for a scheme including a new underground line from Paddington to Liverpool Street. The bill was promoted by London Underground and British Rail, and supported by
581-464: A railway to be built to help maintain the city's position as the second port of the country as well as the chief one for American trade. More specifically, fearing rising competition from Liverpool and railway developments to its favour, the sought railway was to be preferably built to superior standards as to out-perform any of the lines serving the North West of England . Thus, the line built by
664-483: A route south of the Great Western Main Line to link the airport with Reading. Plans for electrification of the line will make it easier to access Heathrow from Reading, since lack of electrification between Reading station and Airport Junction (near West Drayton station) was a limiting factor. Plans under consideration in 2014 included new tunnels between Heathrow and Langley . Signalling Solutions
747-500: A series of passing loops allow fast trains to overtake slower ones. This section is signalled for bi-directional running on each line but this facility is usually only used during engineering working or when there is significant disruption to traffic in one direction. The summit of the line is at Swindon, and falls away in each direction: Swindon is 270 feet (82 m) above Paddington, and 292 feet (89 m) above Bristol Temple Meads. The maximum gradient between Paddington and Didcot
830-477: A specialist investigation by the Railway (London Plan) Committee, appointed in 1944 and reporting in 1946 and 1948. The term "Crossrail" emerged in the 1974 London Rail Study Report. Although the idea was seen as imaginative, only a brief estimate of cost was given: £300 million. A feasibility study was recommended as a high priority so that the practicability and costs of the scheme could be determined. It
913-407: A timetable through the core section, to check the reliability of the railway. In November 2021, Crossrail entered trial operation which is the final stage before opening. With an initial budget of £14.8 billion, the total cost rose to £18.25 billion by November 2019, and increased further to £18.8 billion by December 2020. Delays to the project of several months were caused by
SECTION 10
#1732776751606996-798: A tunnel under the Thames , was awarded to Hochtief and J. Murphy & Sons in 2011. By September 2009, preparatory work for the £1 billion developments at Tottenham Court Road station had begun, with buildings (including the Astoria Theatre ) being compulsorily purchased and demolished. In March 2010, contracts were awarded to civil engineering companies for the second round of 'enabling work' including 'Royal Oak Portal Taxi Facility Demolition', 'Demolition works for Crossrail Bond Street Station ', 'Demolition works for Crossrail Tottenham Court Road Station' and 'Pudding Mill Lane Portal'. In December 2010, contracts were awarded for most of
1079-433: A £5 billion modernisation by Network Rail. Reading railway station saw a major redevelopment with new platforms, a new entrance, footbridge and lifts; the work was completed a year ahead of schedule in July 2014. The eastern section from Paddington to Hayes & Harlington was electrified in 1998. The Crossrail project covered electrification of the line from Airport Junction to Maidenhead and, following
1162-496: Is 1 in 1320 (0.75 ‰ or 0.075 % ); between Didcot and Swindon it is 1 in 660 (1.5 ‰ or 0.15%) but west of Swindon, gradients as steep as 1 in 100 (10 ‰ or 1%) are found in places, such as Box Tunnel and to the east of Dauntsey . The line is electrified between Paddington and Langley Burrell (just east of Chippenham) using 25 kV AC overhead supply lines; the Reading to Taunton line (as far as Newbury) and
1245-572: Is a connecting Transport for Wales boat train to/from Fishguard Harbour for the Stena Line ferry to Rosslare Europort in Ireland . An integrated timetable is offered between London Paddington and Rosslare Europort with through ticketing available. Daytime and nocturnal journeys are offered in both directions daily (including Sundays). Between London and Didcot there are four tracks, two for each direction. The main lines are mostly used by
1328-496: Is presently a part of the national rail system managed by Network Rail while the majority of passenger services upon it are provided by the current Great Western Railway franchise. The GWML was built by the original Great Western Railway company between 1838 and 1841, as a dual track line in the 7 ft ( 2,134 mm ) broad gauge . The broad gauge remained in use until 1892, after which standard gauge track has been exclusively used. Between 1877 and 1932, many sections of
1411-649: The Warship locomotives, which were based on proven West German designs, the British-designed Class 14 , Hymek and Western types. However, these were all eventually withdrawn and replaced with more standard British Rail diesel-electric classes such as the Class 37 and Class 47 . During the 1970s, the line speed of the GWML was upgraded to permit faster operations; this work was in preparation for
1494-593: The 1979–90 Conservative governments that succeeded the 1976–79 Labour government , the proposal was not implemented. In the mid-1990s, the line between London Paddington and Hayes & Harlington was electrified as part of the Heathrow Express scheme, which was officially launched in June 1998. As part of the privatisation of British Rail , the Great Western InterCity franchise
1577-613: The COVID-19 pandemic in England , and in late 2020 this reduced the number of workers that could be safely on-site. By August 2021, seven of the nine new stations had been handed over to TfL. The Abbey Wood to Paddington section opened to passengers on 24 May 2022, although initially trains did not run on Sundays to allow for further testing, nor did they call at Bond Street, which opened on 24 October 2022. From Sunday 6 November trains began running directly from Reading and Heathrow in
1660-549: The Class 800 trains are slower in diesel mode than under electric power. Network Rail plans to install European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) in-cab signalling on the Great Western line; this is a pre-requisite for the Super Express trains to run at 140 mph (225 km/h). Some of this resignalling work was undertaken during the electrification work. Furthermore, Network Rail has envisaged
1743-715: The Great Western Main Line and the Great Eastern Main Line . The project was approved in 2007, and construction began in 2009 on the central section and connections to existing lines that became part of the route, which has been named the Elizabeth line in honour of Queen Elizabeth II who opened the line on 17 May 2022 during her Platinum Jubilee . The central section of the line between Paddington and Abbey Wood opened on 24 May 2022, with 12 trains per hour running in each direction through
SECTION 20
#17327767516061826-498: The Great Western Railway and engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel was originally a dual track line using a wider 7 ft ( 2,134 mm ) broad gauge . The line's construction costs were considerably higher due to the use of this broad gauge. The route of the GWML includes dozens of listed buildings and structures, including tunnel portals, bridges and viaducts, stations, and associated hotels. Part of
1909-536: The Slough rail accident of 1900, in which five passengers were killed, improved vacuum braking systems were used on locomotives and passenger rolling stock; furthermore, Automatic Train Control (ATC) was introduced in 1908. Further widenings of the line took place between 1903 and 1910; another round of widening works occurred between 1931 and 1932. By the 1930s, trains traversing the GWML were reportedly attaining
1992-557: The Thames Tideway Scheme and the High Speed 2 projects, which were under development in London at the same time as Crossrail, the excavation works that took place during the project gave archaeologists a valuable opportunity to explore the earth underneath London's streets that was previously seen as inaccessible. Crossrail undertook what was described as one of the most extensive archaeological programmes ever seen in
2075-750: The Thames Valley , crossing the River Thames three times, including on the Maidenhead Railway Bridge . Between Chippenham and Bath the line passes through Box Tunnel , and then follows the valley of the River Avon . A junction west of Swindon allows trains to reach Bristol by an alternative route along the South Wales Main Line . Other diversionary routes exist between Chippenham and Bath via Melksham and
2158-578: The Wessex Main Line , although this involves a reversal at Bradford Junction; and from Reading to Bath via the Reading–Taunton line . Most services are provided by Great Western Railway (GWR). The stations served by trains between London Paddington and Bristol Temple Meads are Reading , Didcot Parkway , Swindon , Chippenham , and Bath Spa . Some trains between London and Bristol do not call at Didcot Parkway. The Elizabeth line runs on
2241-575: The Bond Street station site in February 2015, was fired three days later, and faced repeated difficulties in gaining new employment on the project. He alleged there was a "secretive system of misuse of private information" about union activists. Crossrail and the contractors denied all Collins' allegations, saying they settled the court case "for purely commercial reasons" and "without admission of liability or wrongdoing". Collins received an undisclosed sum for damages and to cover court costs. Much like
2324-692: The Cornish Riviera Express, which again made full use of the wider loading gauge on that route. At the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the Great Western Railway, and thus the GWML, was taken into government control, as were most major railways in Britain. After the conflict, the companies were reorganised into the "big four" companies , of which the Great Western Railway was one. The railways, including
2407-505: The Crossrail scheme, and also a Wimbledon–Hackney scheme. While CLRL was promoting the Crossrail project, alternative schemes were being proposed. In 2002, GB Railways put forward a scheme called SuperCrossRail which would link regional stations such as Cambridge , Guildford , Oxford , Milton Keynes Central , Southend Victoria and Ipswich via a west–east rail tunnel through central London. The tunnel would follow an alignment along
2490-509: The GWML include West London (including Acton , Ealing , Hanwell , Southall , Hayes , Harlington and West Drayton ); Iver ; Langley ; Slough ; Burnham ; Taplow ; Maidenhead ; Twyford ; Reading ; Tilehurst ; Pangbourne ; Goring-on-Thames ; Streatley ; Cholsey ; Didcot ; Swindon ; Chippenham ; Bath ; Keynsham ; and Bristol . The route includes dozens of listed buildings and structures, including tunnel portals, bridges and viaducts, stations, and associated hotels. Presently,
2573-409: The GWML is electrified between London Paddington and Royal Wootton Bassett. In the long term, Network Rail plans to install European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) in-cab signalling across the entire line. The construction of what would become the GWML was motivated by several factors, one of the more influential being the sizeable merchant community of Bristol, which keenly advocated for such
Crossrail (disambiguation) - Misplaced Pages Continue
2656-462: The GWML were widened to four tracks. During 1908, Automatic Train Control (ATC) was introduced as a safety measure. In 1948, the Great Western Railway, and thus the GWML, was merged into the Western Region of British Railways . During the 1970s, the GWML was upgraded to support higher line speeds, as a result of which many sections permitted 125 mph (201 km/h) operations, enabling
2739-527: The GWML, returned to direct government control during the Second World War before being nationalised to form British Railways (BR) in 1948, thus bringing the line into public ownership. Unlike the other BR regions, which introduced diesel-electric locomotives, the Western Region , to which the GWML belonged, decided to procure a complete range of diesel-hydraulic locomotives to fulfil its type 1 to type 4 power requirements. These included
2822-485: The Great Western Main Line between London and Reading. Fast Heathrow Express trains from Paddington to London Heathrow Airport are operated by GWR on behalf of Heathrow Airport Holdings . CrossCountry operate trains between Reading and Oxford, using the Great Western Main Line as far as Didcot. Great Western Railway also operate a train between London Paddington – Cardiff Central every 30 minutes, with hourly extensions to Swansea . At Swansea/Cardiff there
2905-415: The Great Western Main Line include West London (including Acton , Ealing , Hanwell , Southall , Hayes , Harlington and West Drayton ); Iver ; Langley ; Slough ; Burnham ; Taplow ; Maidenhead ; Twyford ; Reading ; Tilehurst ; Pangbourne ; Goring-on-Thames ; Streatley ; Cholsey ; Didcot ; Swindon ; Chippenham ; Bath ; Keynsham ; and Bristol . From London to Didcot, the line follows
2988-541: The River Thames, with stations at Charing Cross , Blackfriars and London Bridge . In 2004 another proposal named Superlink was promoted by a group of senior railway managers. Like SuperCrossRail, Superlink envisaged linking a number of regional stations via a tunnel through London, but advocated the route already safeguarded for Crossrail. CLRL evaluated both proposals and rejected them due to concerns about network capacity and cost issues. The Crossrail Act 2008
3071-591: The South Wales Main Line (as far as Cardiff Central) are also electrified. The line speed is 125 mph (201 km/h). The relief lines from Paddington to Didcot are limited to 90 mph (140 km/h) as far as Reading, and then 100 mph (160 km/h) to Didcot. Lower restrictions apply at various locations. The line is one of two Network Rail -owned lines equipped with the Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system,
3154-458: The Thames tunnel, which involves tunnelling through chalk ; and 'Earth Pressure Balance Machines' (EPBM) for tunnelling through clay, sand and gravel (at lower levels through Lambeth Group and Thanet Sands ground formation). The TBMs weigh nearly 1,000 tonnes and are over 100 metres (330 feet) long. The main tunnelling contracts were valued at around £1.5 billion. Crossrail ran
3237-538: The UK. Over 100 archaeologists have found tens of thousands of items from 40 sites, spanning 55 million years of London's history and prehistory. Many of the items were placed on show at the Museum of London Docklands from February to September 2017. Some of the most notable finds include: In the first half of 2021, Crossrail entered trial running stage of construction. Crossrail, in partnership with TfL, ran trains to
3320-662: The adjacent Network Rail line to be closed. On 7 March 2014, Rene Tkacik, a Slovakian construction worker, was killed by a piece of falling concrete while working in a tunnel. In April 2014, The Observer reported details of a leaked internal report, compiled for the Crossrail contractors by an independent safety consultancy. The report was alleged to have pointed to poor industrial relations arising from safety concerns, and that workers were "too scared to report injuries for fear of being sacked". Three construction workers died from suspected heart attacks over six months in 2019, but Crossrail announced that, following extensive testing,
3403-490: The air quality at Bond Street station was within acceptable limits. In 2012, Crossrail faced accusations of blacklisting . It was revealed that an industrial relations manager, Ron Barron, employed by Bechtel , had routinely cross-checked job applicants against the Consulting Association database. An employment tribunal in 2010 heard that Barron introduced the use of the blacklist at his former employer,
Crossrail (disambiguation) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3486-586: The area. On 24 June 2009 it was reported that no traces of anthrax or bubonic plague had been found on human bone fragments discovered during tunnelling. Invitations to tender for the two principal tunnelling contracts were published in the Official Journal of the European Union in August 2009. 'Tunnels West' (C300) was for twin 6.2-kilometre-long (3.9-mile) tunnels from Royal Oak through to
3569-440: The construction firm Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (CB&I), and referred to it more than 900 times in 2007 alone. He was found to have unlawfully refused employment to a Philip Willis. Aggravated damages were awarded because Barron had added information about Willis to the blacklist. In May 2012, a BFK manager challenged their subcontractor, Electrical Installations Services Ltd. (EIS), saying that one of their electricians
3652-512: The core section in Central London . The main feature of the project was the construction of a new railway line that runs underground from Paddington Station to a junction near Whitechapel. There it splits into a branch to Stratford , where it joins the Great Eastern Main Line ; and a branch to Abbey Wood in southeast London. When the Elizabeth line became fully operational in May 2023,
3735-528: The deployment of ERTMS to function as the replacement for the aging ATP system. Further capacity improvements are also scheduled at Swindon, adding to recent changes and the new Platform 4. Crossrail services are planned to terminate at Reading. Some of the current suburban services into London Paddington are planned to be transferred to the new Crossrail service, which will free up some surface-level capacity at Paddington. Other more distant aspirations include resignalling and capacity improvements at Reading;
3818-865: The existing Great Eastern Main Line at Stratford . The south-eastern branch runs underground to Abbey Wood via Canary Wharf , Custom House and Woolwich . This branch takes over a stretch of the former North London line built by the Eastern Counties and Thames Junction Railway , and connects it with the North Kent Line via a tunnel under the Thames at North Woolwich . The tunnelled sections are altogether approximately 42 km (26 miles) in length. There are new stations at Paddington , Bond Street , Tottenham Court Road , Farringdon , Liverpool Street and Whitechapel , with interchanges with London Underground and National Rail services. Due to
3901-412: The faster trains and are on the south side of the route. The relief lines on the north side are used for slower services and those that call at all stations, as only London Paddington, Slough, Maidenhead, Twyford, Reading and Didcot Parkway stations have platforms on the main lines (although a few others have main line platforms that can be used in an emergency). Between Didcot and Royal Wootton Bassett ,
3984-535: The government; it was rejected by the Private Bill Committee in 1994 on the grounds that a case had not been made, though the government issued "Safeguarding Directions", protecting the route from any development that would jeopardise future schemes. In 2001, Cross London Rail Links (CLRL), a joint-venture between TfL and the Department for Transport (DfT), was formed to develop and promote
4067-403: The highest average speeds in the world. A legacy of the broad gauge was that trains for some routes could be built slightly wider than was normal in Britain; examples included the 1929-built " Super Saloons " used on the boat train services that conveyed transatlantic passengers to London in luxury. When the company celebrated its centenary during 1935, new "Centenary" carriages were built for
4150-580: The introduction of the InterCity 125 high speed train (HST). The HST brought about considerable improvements in service and reduced journey times. In 1977, the Parliamentary Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended considering electrification of more of Britain's rail network and, by 1979, British Rail had presented a range of options that included electrifying the line from Paddington to Swansea by 2000. Under
4233-503: The junction and Heathrow Central (mostly in a tunnel) is not owned by Network Rail but by Heathrow Airport Holdings . Great Western Main Line The Great Western Main Line ( GWML ) is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea . The GWML
SECTION 50
#17327767516064316-659: The last 500 miles of track were converted to standard gauge. Between 1877 and 1899, the original dual tracks were widened to four in numerous places, mainly in the east half of the line: Paddington to Southall (October 1877), Southall to West Drayton (November 1878), West Drayton to Slough (June 1879), Slough to east side of Maidenhead Bridge (September 1884), Maidenhead Bridge to Reading (June 1893), Reading station (1899), Reading to Pangbourne (July 1893), Pangbourne to Cholsey and Moulsford (June 1894), Cholsey and Moulsford to Didcot (December 1892); also short sections between Didcot and Swindon, and at Bristol. Following
4399-553: The length and positioning of the new platforms, Farringdon station is also connected to Barbican station, and Liverpool Street to Moorgate station. From the western end of the tunnel Elizabeth line services continue to Hayes and Harlington where they either remain on the Great Western Main Line and run to Reading or Maidenhead via Slough or split off to the Heathrow branch terminating at Heathrow Terminals 4 or 5 . Existing stations were refurbished and upgraded, including
4482-563: The line would not open in 2021, with TfL not expecting the full line from Heathrow to Shenfield to open until the early part of the 2023/24 financial year. In August 2020, Crossrail announced that the central section would be ready to open "in the first half of 2022". In May 2021, trial running commenced, with the core section opened by Queen Elizabeth II for passenger service on 24 May 2022. The project used eight 7.1-metre (23-foot) diameter tunnel-boring machines (TBM) from Herrenknecht AG (Germany). Two types are used; 'slurry' type for
4565-499: The new Crossrail Farringdon Station , with a portal west of Paddington . The 'Tunnels East' (C305) request was for three tunnel sections and 'launch chambers' in east London . Contracts were awarded in late 2010: the 'Tunnels West' contract was awarded to BAM Nuttall , Ferrovial Agroman and Kier Construction (BFK); the 'Tunnels East' contract was awarded to Dragados and John Sisk & Son . The remaining tunnelling contract (C310, Plumstead to North Woolwich ), which included
4648-703: The new nine-carriage Class 345 trains started to run at frequencies in the central section of up to 24 trains per hour in each direction through the central core, after which services divide into two branches: in the west to Reading and to Heathrow Central ; in the east to Abbey Wood and to Shenfield . Local services on the section of the Great Eastern Main Line between Liverpool Street and Shenfield had been transferred to TfL Rail in May 2015; TfL Rail also took over Heathrow Connect services in May 2018 and replaced some local services between Paddington and Reading in December 2019. The TfL Rail brand
4731-432: The newly introduced InterCity 125 high speed train (HST) to make faster journeys. British Rail proposed widespread electrification of the line in the late 1970s, although this was not speedily implemented. During the mid-1990s, a stretch of the GWML between London Paddington and Hayes & Harlington was electrified using 25 kV AC overhead lines for the Heathrow Express . Further, although not total, electrification
4814-474: The other being the Chiltern Main Line . Major civil engineering structures on the Great Western Main Line include the following. and Bristol Temple Meads Line-side train monitoring equipment includes hot axle box detectors (HABD) and 'Wheelchex' wheel impact load detectors (WILD), sited as follows. (Down Main disconnected December 2016) Since 2011, the Great Western has been undergoing
4897-404: The overhead lines were powered up between Westbourne Park and Stepney , the installation of platform doors was completed, and video was released of the first trains travelling through the tunnels. TfL Rail took over Heathrow Connect services from Paddington to Heathrow in May 2018. At the end of August 2018, four months before the scheduled opening of the core section of the line, it
4980-696: The peak of construction up to 14,000 people were expected to be needed in the project's supply chain. Work began on 15 May 2009 when piling works started at the future Canary Wharf station . The threat of diseases being released by work on the project was raised by Lord James of Blackheath at the passing of the Crossrail Bill. He told the House of Lords select committee that 682 victims of anthrax had been brought into Smithfield in Farringdon with some contaminated meat in 1520 and then buried in
5063-519: The project was repeatedly delayed, including several months caused by the COVID-19 pandemic . The concept of large-diameter tunnels crossing central London to connect Paddington in the west and Liverpool Street in the east was first proposed by railwayman George Dow in The Star newspaper in June 1941. The project that became Crossrail has origins in the 1943 County of London Plan and 1944 Greater London Plan by Patrick Abercrombie . These led to
SECTION 60
#17327767516065146-405: The prospect of delays to the project in updates to Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, and called for TfL commissioner Mike Brown to consider his position. Crossrail said major challenges before completion included writing and testing the software that would integrate the train with three different track signalling systems, and installing equipment inside the tunnels. In July 2019, it was announced that
5229-423: The provision of four continuous tracks between Didcot and Swindon (including a grade-separated junction at Milton, where the westbound relief line switches from the north side of the line to the south); and resignalling between Bath and Bristol to enable trains to run closer together. Access to Heathrow Airport from the west remains an aspiration and the 2009 Heathrow Airtrack scheme, abandoned in 2011, proposed
5312-488: The provision of step-free access at all stations, and platform lengthening at most to accommodate the new 200-metre-long (660 ft) trains. Earlier plans suggested terminating at Maidenhead, with an extension to Reading safeguarded. Various commentators advocated an extension further west as far as Reading because it was seen as complementary to the Great Western Electrification project which
5395-590: The railway tunnels was officially completed at Farringdon on 4 June 2015 in the presence of the Prime Minister and the Mayor of London . Installation of the track was completed in September 2017. The ETCS signalling was scheduled to be tested in the Heathrow tunnels over the winter of 2017–2018. The south east section of the infrastructure was energised in February 2018, with the first test train run between Plumstead and Abbey Wood that month. In May 2018
5478-498: The relief lines between Reading and London had been raised, so that 86% of the line could be used at 90 mph (140 km/h). By 2019, the partial electrification of the GWML permitted the replacement of InterCity 125 and Class 180 sets by new Hitachi Super Express high speed trains – the Class 800 and Class 802 . The procurement programme for these trains, known as the Intercity Express Programme ,
5561-613: The route passes through and contributes to the Georgian Architecture of the City of Bath World Heritage Site; the path through Sydney Gardens has been described as a "piece of deliberate railway theatre by Brunel without parallel" . Grade I listed structures on the line include London Paddington , Wharncliffe Viaduct , the 1839 Tudor gothic River Avon Bridge in Bristol, and Bristol Temple Meads station . The line
5644-773: The tunnel to the Great Western Main Line and the Metropolitan line on the Underground. The City route was shown as a new connection across the City of London linking the Great Northern Route with London Bridge. The north–south line proposed routing West Coast Main Line , Thameslink, and Great Northern trains through Euston and King's Cross / St Pancras , then under the West End via Tottenham Court Road , Piccadilly Circus and Victoria towards Crystal Palace and Hounslow . The report also recommended
5727-564: The tunnelling work. To assist with the skills required for the Crossrail project, Crossrail opened in 2011 the Tunnelling and Underground Construction Academy in Ilford . The academy was handed over to TfL in 2017, who have sub-contracted its management to PROCAT . In February 2010, Crossrail was accused of bullying residents whose property lay on the route into selling for less than the market value. A subsequent London Assembly report
5810-442: The west to Abbey Wood, and from Shenfield in the east through to Paddington as the surface railways connect with the central tunnels. TfL expects that the full line, with final timetable, will be operational by May 2023. In the west, the new tunnel connects with the Great Western Main Line at Royal Oak , west of Paddington . East of Whitechapel the line splits at an underground junction. The north-eastern branch emerges to join
5893-575: Was a trade union activist. Some days later, Pat Swift, the HR manager for BFK and a regular user of the Consulting Association , again challenged EIS. EIS refused to dismiss their worker and lost the contract. Flash pickets were held at the Crossrail site and also at the sites of the BFK partners. The Scottish Affairs Select Committee called on the UK Business Secretary , Vince Cable , to set up
5976-417: Was also suggested that the alignment of the tunnels should be safeguarded while a final decision was taken. The Central London Rail Study of 1989 proposed tunnels linking the existing rail network as the "East–West Crossrail", "City Crossrail", and "North–South Crossrail" schemes. The east–west scheme was for a line from Liverpool Street to Paddington/Marylebone with two connections at its western end linking
6059-403: Was announced in July 2009. A Reading terminus was also recommended by Network Rail's 2011 Route Utilisation Strategy . On 27 March 2014 it was announced that the line would indeed extend to Reading. A flyover at Airport Junction near Hayes & Harlington station allows Heathrow Express trains to pass over the track used by Crossrail, avoiding delays caused by crossings. The line between
6142-409: Was announced that completion was delayed and that the line would not open before autumn 2019. In April 2019, it was announced that Crossrail would be completed between October 2020 and March 2021, two years behind schedule, and that it would not include the opening of the Bond Street station, one of ten new stations on the line. The London Assembly's transport committee concluded that TfL played down
6225-462: Was awarded by the Director of Passenger Rail Franchising to Great Western Holdings in December 1995, and it began operations on 4 February 1996. Via multiple contract extensions, this operator, which currently trades as Great Western Railway has been the primary operator of passenger services on the GWML for multiple decades. In August 2008, it was announced that a number of speed limits on
6308-636: Was carried out during the 2010s; this permitted the replacement of diesel-powered trains such as the InterCity 125 and Class 180 with electric and bi-mode train sets such as the Hitachi Super Express high speed trains, specifically the Class 800 and Class 802 . Due to budget overruns, the British government deferred electrification of the section through Bath Spa from Royal Wootton Bassett to Bristol in 2016. Communities served by
6391-407: Was completed in December 2017, and to Thingley Junction in December 2019. Electrification of associated lines, including Bristol Parkway to Temple Meads and Didcot to Oxford, was also postponed indefinitely; electrification of the route between London and Cardiff was completed in 2019. The government argued that bi-mode trains would fill in the gaps pending completion of electrification, although
6474-564: Was discontinued when the core section of the Elizabeth line opened in May 2022. The Elizabeth line is operated by MTR Corporation (Crossrail) Ltd as a London Rail concession of Transport for London (TfL), in a similar manner to London Overground . TfL's annual revenues from the line were forecast in 2018 to be nearly £500 million in 2022–23 and over £1 billion from 2024 to 2025. The total estimated cost rose from an initial budget of £14.8 billion to £18.8 billion by December 2020. Originally planned to open in 2018,
6557-628: Was given royal assent in July 2008, giving CLRL the powers necessary to build the line. In September 2009, TfL was loaned £1 billion towards the project by the European Investment Bank . Both Conservatives and Labour made commitments in their 2010 election manifestos to deliver Crossrail, and the coalition government following the election was committed to the project. In April 2009, Crossrail announced that 17 firms had secured 'Enabling Works Framework Agreements' and would now be able to compete for packages of works. At
6640-590: Was highly critical of the insensitive way in which Crossrail had dealt with compulsory purchases and the lack of assistance given to the people and businesses affected. There were also complaints from music fans , as the London Astoria was forced to close. In December 2011, a contract to ship the excavated material from the tunnel to Wallasea Island was awarded to a joint venture comprising BAM Nuttall Limited and Van Oord UK Limited. Between 4.5 and 5 million tonnes of soil would be used to construct
6723-426: Was highly impacted by the GWML's electrification scheme, particularly the abandonment of diesel-only trains in favour of bi-mode trains, which were elongated and outfitted with a second transformer to maximise their use of the electrified sections. The electrification of the line also allowed the introduction of other rolling stock, such as Class 387 EMUs, to conduct shorter-distance services. Communities served by
6806-471: Was opened in stages between 1838 and 1841. The first section, between Paddington Station and Maidenhead Bridge station opened on 4 June 1838, while the final section, between Chippenham and Bath, was opened on completion of the Box Tunnel , the longest railway tunnel driven by that time, in June 1841. The line's alignment was so level and straight it was nicknamed "Brunel's billiard table". The track
6889-600: Was supplemented with a third rail for dual gauge operation, allowing standard gauge 4 ft 8 + 1 ⁄ 2 in ( 1,435 mm ) trains to also operate on the route, in stages between 1854 and 1875. Dual gauge was introduced as follows: London to Reading (October 1861), Reading to Didcot (December 1856), Didcot to Swindon (February 1872), Swindon to Thingley Junction, Chippenham (June 1874), Thingley Junction to Bathampton (March 1875), Bathampton to Bristol (June 1874), Bristol station area (May 1854). The broad gauge remained in use until 1892, at which point
#605394