ondon expected to go Crossroads crazy next week, with “hordes” of people walking at night or arriving early to be the first to travel on the new £ 20 billion railway.
Transport to London Commissioner Andy Byford predicts “great interest” before the opening day on Tuesday, enthusiasts are even coming from abroad.
The Elizabeth Line will open at 6.30am trains will depart from Paddington and Abby Wood station.
Last September, about 150 people stood in line from 5 a.m. to travel on the first train extending the northern line to the Battersea power plant. Mr Byford told Standard: “I think it will be exponentially more than that.
“I think there is such an interest in this brand new, in fact the main line that runs through central London that we will make people with their crowds come and visit that first day.
“I’m expecting a lot of Londoners, but I’m also expecting people from all over the UK. I think that foreign guests will actually come to us. There will be a lot of interest in this. “
It came at a time when outgoing Crossrail CEO Mark Wilde echoed Boris Johnson, saying plans for Crossrail 2 should be resumed.
The line was shut down by order of the government in 2020, but Mr Johnson, speaking Tuesday at the Queen’s Crossrail opening, said: “I think we should continue this.”
Mr Wilde described Crossrail 2 as “absolutely necessary”.
Yesterday at a briefing in Faringdon, he said that if London returned to estimates of population growth before the 11 million pandemic, “if we don’t build it, Waterloo will overflow.”
The briefing took place in the Bloom building, above Farringdon Station, which will be home to TikTok.
Alexander Ian, chairman of the Central District Union and Business Improvement Hatton Garden, which organized the event, said: “I think many business leaders were delighted and surprised by the high support of Prime Minister Crossrail 2.
“Even though Crossrail is late, now is the perfect time. It will give a real chance to encourage people to return to central London. “
In 2016, Crossrail 2 was worth £ 32.6 billion. Two options have been proposed – the Tube line, which connects Wimbledon and Alexander Palace, or a longer “regional” route, similar to the Crossrail, which connects Epsom and Cheshunt via central London.
Mr Johnson said London businesses would have to pay for Crossrail 2.
Most of Crossrail’s £ 20bn costs are funded by business tariffs and a fee for community infrastructure for new developments along the 73-mile route.
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/elizabeth-line-hordes-expected-opening-crossrail-2-b1001312.html
