London mayor hints at further Crossrail projects

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Constructing more Crossrail routes and a new orbital rail network are two of the solutions which have been put forward by Mayor of London Boris Johnson to solve the transport challenges facing the city.

Launching the London Infrastructure Plan 2050, Johnson stressed the importance of continuing to develop the capital’s urban rail network if the city is to cope with the predicted growth in its population.

A statement released by the mayor’s office said ” Crossrail 2 must be approved and further Crossrail projects may be required”. It also indicated that there was also an opportunity to work with Network Rail to double the capacity of London’s rail network.

London’s population is forecast to increase by 37 per cent to in excess of 11 million Londoners by 2050.

map (1)
Proposed route for new orbital rail network.

The full document includes the possible route of a new orbital rail network (See page 90) around the capital, which would connect Harringay, Abbey Wood, Norwood Junction and Hounslow. The railway would connect to Old Oak Common – HS2’s west London interchange – and a branch line through the centre would link Wimbledon, Peckham Rye and Lewisham.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, said: “This plan is a real wake up call to the stark needs that face London over the next half century. Infrastructure underpins everything we do and we all use it every day. Without a long term plan for investment and the political will to implement it this city will falter. Londoners need to know they will get the homes, water, energy, schools, transport, digital connectivity and better quality of life that they expect.”

A three-month consultation has now begun and a final report is due to be published in early 2015.

5 COMMENTS

  1. “London’s population is forecast to increase by 37 per cent to in excess of 11 million Londoners by 2050” – yes, because partly we keep spending a fortune on infrastructure in London. I’m in favour of the first crossrail, but the funding for the remainder would be better spent on metros and rail improvements in other parts of the city.

  2. Well linking other parts of the city is exactly what this proposed new outer london orbital network would do.

  3. All very well, but with arterial sclerosis already well developed on the main lines leading into the capital (and I’m thinking particularly of the Tonbridge and Brighton main lines) coupled with no particular political appetite for real long term solutions, I cannot see how this will alleviate the problem for the long- suffering, long-distance commuter at all. We need BML2 & TML2 now, not in 2050

  4. The solution is not to spend huge amounts of money on London but to invest in the rest of the country so that the population is more spread out.

  5. This is a chicken and egg scenario? I suspect the population forecast is in part based on the projected demand for housing. If we can’t satisfy the demand for housing (that is affordable) then presumably the business case for new transport systems is compromised?

    One of the bigger issues I think we need to consider with the projected growth of London is the increased demands on infrastructure generally – water, waste, sewage and power. Like transport systems this is likely to have some serious consequences on neighbourhoods across the Capital.

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