London Underground given go ahead to deliver Croxley Rail Link
· Agreement reached with DfT and HCC over funding of the scheme
· Work due to commence by the end of this year
· The
extension will see Metropolitan line trains serving Watford Junction
and Watford High Street stations, as well as two new stations on the
route
· Rail
link will provide Metropolitan line customers access to West Coast
mainline National Rail services from Watford Junction station
London
Underground (LU) today confirmed that it will take over delivery of the
Croxley Rail Link after an agreement was reached with the Department
for Transport (DfT) and Hertfordshire County Council (HCC) over funding.
Construction
work to re-route and extend the Metropolitan line to Watford Junction
is planned to start later this year. The plan, which is part of a major
investment designed to support the growth and regeneration in the
area, includes creating new links to Watford General Hospital, Croxley
Business Park and Cardiff Road Industrial Estate - increasing employment
opportunities.
 |
| Watford Junction which will be the terminus for underground trains that have travelled via the new link |
Two
new stations will be created at Cassiobridge and Watford Vicarage Road,
served by new walk-through air-conditioned trains every ten minutes to
and from central London during peak hours. The existing Watford station
will close following the opening of the new stations, and the first
trains are expected to run on the extended line by 2019.
David
Hughes, LU’s Director of Major Programme Sponsorship, said: “We have a
track record for successfully delivering major projects - the recent
signalling upgrade of the Northern line, which has boosted capacity by
20 per cent, being the latest example. Until now the Croxley Rail link
project has been managed by Hertfordshire County Council, who along with
Government are providing the bulk of the project funding. Late last
year, faced with significant project slippage and cost escalation, the
Government asked us to consider stepping in and taking over
responsibility for delivery of the scheme. We were clear that a
suitable funding package needed to be in place before we would be
prepared to take this on.
“As
announced in the Budget, those discussions have now concluded, and the
Mayor has confirmed that LU should take on overall delivery
responsibility for the project. We have agreed to contribute £16m,
which is the approximate cost of the additional train services required
to support the link when it opens in 2019.”
LU
is carrying out a huge programme of rebuilding, with major stations,
trains, track and signalling being updated or replaced to provide more
capacity for a growing city. Line modernisation is at the core of LU’s
investment programme, which will deliver more than 30 per cent increase
in capacity. The programme is being delivered over the coming years,
with work to the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and
Metropolitan lines well underway.
Following
modernisation, the Victoria line is now operating one of the highest
frequency train services anywhere in Europe, the Jubilee line service
has been significantly improved, and the first phase of the
modernisation of the Northern line has recently been completed with
capacity increased by 20 per cent – the equivalent space for an extra
11,000 passengers per hour.
New
air-conditioned walk-through trains are being introduced on 40 per cent
of the LU network. The Circle, Metropolitan and Hammersmith & City
lines currently have these trains in service and they are currently
being introduced on to the District line, where more trains will be
delivered during 2015.
