For the gymnast, see Elizabeth Line (gymnast). For the queue humorously referred to as "the Elizabeth Line", see Queue for the lying-in-state of Elizabeth II.
Elizabeth line
An Elizabeth line train (British Rail Class 345) at Abbey Wood in May 2022
Overview
Service type
Hybrid urban-suburban rail[1]
System
National Rail
Locale
Greater London
Berkshire
Buckinghamshire
Essex
Predecessor
TfL Rail
First service
24 May 2022; 23 months ago (2022-05-24)
Current operator(s)
MTR Elizabeth line Limited[2]
Annual ridership
204.296 million (2022/2023)[3] passenger journeys
Website
tfl.gov.uk/modes/elizabeth-line/
Route
Termini
West: Heathrow Terminal 4, Heathrow Terminal 5 and Reading East: Abbey Wood and Shenfield
Stops
41
Distance travelled
73 mi (117 km)[4]
Technical
Rolling stock
Class 345[5]
Track gauge
1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification
Overhead line, 25 kV 50 Hz AC
Operating speed
Crossrail: 60 mph (95 km/h)
GWML, Heathrow and GEML: 90 mph (145 km/h)
Track owner(s)
Transport for London (Old Oak Common–Abbey Wood and Stratford)
Network Rail (Pudding Mill Lane–Shenfield, and Old Oak Common–Reading)
Heathrow Airport Holdings (Heathrow branch)
Transport for London rail lines
London Underground
Bakerloo
Central
Circle
District
Hammersmith & City
Jubilee
Metropolitan
Northern
Piccadilly
Victoria
Waterloo & City
London Overground
Liberty
Lioness
Mildmay
Suffragette
Weaver
Windrush
Other TfL Modes
DLR
Elizabeth line
London Trams
v
t
e
The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of Paddington station to Abbey Wood and via Whitechapel to the Great Eastern Main Line near Stratford; along the Great Western Main Line to Reading and Heathrow Airport in the west; and along the Great Eastern Main Line to Shenfield in the east. The service is named after Queen Elizabeth II, who officially opened the line on 17 May 2022 during her Platinum Jubilee year; passenger services started on 24 May 2022. Despite being named under the same system as London Underground lines, and having sections which are underground, the Elizabeth line is not classified as a London Underground line.
Under the project name of Crossrail, the system was approved in 2007, and construction began in 2009. Originally planned to open in 2018, the project was repeatedly delayed, including for several months as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In May 2015, existing commuter services on a section of one of the eastern branches, between Liverpool Street and Shenfield, were transferred to TfL Rail; this precursor service also took control of Heathrow Connect in May 2018, and some local services on the Paddington to Reading line in December 2019. These services were augmented by a new central section in May 2022, and rebranded as the Elizabeth line. The outer services were connected to the central section in November 2022. Since May 2023, the central section has up to 24 nine-carriage Class 345 trains per hour in each direction. Elizabeth line services are operated by MTR Elizabeth line.
^"TfL Rail: What we do". Transport for London. Archived from the original on 24 May 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
^"MTR selected to operate Crossrail services". Railway Gazette International. London. 18 July 2014. Archived from the original on 26 July 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2022.
^"Passenger journeys by operator". Office of Rail and Road. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
^Moore, Rowan (13 March 2022). "A megalopolis of engineering: the verdict on London's £18bn new Elizabeth line". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 July 2023.
^Cite error: The named reference rgi20140206 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
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