Business group London First has said a second Crossrail scheme is ‘needed’ in London serving Clapham Junction, Victoria, Euston, King’s Cross St Pancras, Islington, Hackney and Seven Sisters, and ‘detailed planning of a suitable scheme needs to start now’.
The group said it has been analysing the business case for the scheme over the last six months.
The study, led by former Transport Secretary, Lord Andrew Adonis, has ‘considered work previously undertaken by Transport for London on a route for ‘Crossrail 2′ between Chelsea and Hackney, and examined demand and congestion forecasts post 2020 and the impact of new national projects, including HS2’.
The study claims that by the late 2020s, ‘even after the completion of Crossrail, Thameslink and the current Tube upgrades, central, south-west and north-east London’s rail and underground networks will be heavily congested, and there will be a critical need for new capacity’.
This will be ‘best provided by a second Crossrail line connecting these parts of London’, London First said.
Lord Andrew Adonis, Chair of London First’s Crossrail 2 study, said:
“Forecasts show that demand for London’s public transport systems will continue to grow strongly over the next twenty years – and High Speed 2 will add to the pressures.
“Crossrail 2 – from the south-west to the north-east of London – is crucial to keep London moving from the 2020s. Infrastructure schemes have a lengthy planning cycle, so we need to start planning for Crossrail 2 now.
“We must not repeat the mistake of Crossrail 1 and spend 40 years planning and generating support for a scheme needed within 20 years.”
