Crossrail 2, a new cross-London railway project, has received support from Network Rail, the company that operates the railway network in the UK.
The new Crossrail 2 line is intended to reduce traffic congestion by offering extra capacity for passengers travelling on the Underground and national rail networks. The new rail line is expected to offer suburban and regional services between parts of Middlesex and Surrey in the southwest, and Hertfordshire in the northeast of the region, using a new central tunnel between Wimbledon and Tottenham.
The new line has been recommended by a recent report submitted by London First’s Crossrail taskforce, under the leadership of former transport secretary, Lord Adonis.
The report states that, ‘a new south-west to north-east (SW-NE) rail line, Crossrail 2, should be built to provide suburban and regional services between Hertfordshire and parts of Surrey and Middlesex, via a new central tunnel between Tottenham and Wimbledon.
The main rationale for this is that rapid population and central London employment growth will require the provision of significant additional capacity on London’s transport networks from the mid 2020s onwards. Over the next 20 years, employment in London – mostly in central London – is projected to rise by 700,000 and the capital’s population is expected to rise by 1.5 million to almost 10 million, its highest level ever.’
David Higgins, the chief executive officer of Network Rail, said, ‘If the capital’s economy is to continue to thrive then we must plan now, together, for the transport infrastructure requirements of London’s future.
Our projections show that by 2031 we will need to accommodate 36 percent more commuters into London each day. Network Rail is already delivering the biggest capacity improvement programme since the Victorian era, but even that will not be enough on some routes.
A regional Crossrail 2 scheme will provide the capacity we need to provide for the commuters of the future, providing extra capacity to and through central London and easing overcrowding on the already congested routes into Waterloo and Liverpool Street.’
