Crossrail: Elizabeth Line due to open on 24 May

The central section of the Elizabeth Line, part of the £19bn Crossrail project, is set to open on 24 May, Transport for London (TfL) has announced. The first section of the line to open to passengers will link Abbey Wood to Paddington, and will slash journey times by almost half - to 29 minutes. 

The Elizabeth Line, when open in full, will link Reading and Essex via central London. Services in the central London section will run every five minutes between 6:30am and 11pm.  The opening comes a week prior to the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations.

Construction of Crossrail began at Canary Wharf on 15 May 2009, with tunnelling work starting in May 2012. The line will boost transport capacity in London and south-east England and cut journey times, with a number of new stations.

TfL’s commissioner, Andy Byford, said: “We are using these final few weeks to continue to build up reliability on the railway and get the Elizabeth Line ready to welcome customers.

“The opening day is set to be a truly historic moment for the capital and the UK, and we look forward to showcasing a simply stunning addition to our network.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said the opening of the Elizabeth Line would help build a “safer, fairer, greener and more prosperous city for all Londoners.”

Further details are available on the TFL website