West London Section of Elizabeth Line to Fully Open
There will be no need to change at Paddington from this November
Journey times to West End, City and Canary Wharf set to collapse. Picture: TfL
The long-delayed full opening of the Elizabeth Line is due to take place on Sunday 6 November.
At present, the western section of the line is not directly linked with the tunnel through the centre of London and passengers need to change at Paddington.
Now trains will run directly from Reading and Heathrow to Abbey Wood stopping at station such as Southall, Hanwell, West Ealing, Ealing Broadway, Acton Mainline and, eventually, Old Oak Common. Predicted journey times from West Ealing are 10 minutes to Paddington, 12 minutes to Bond Street, 21 minutes to Liverpool Street and 27 minutes to Canary Wharf. Going in the other direction the journey to Reading will take 39 minutes compared to 53 on current rail services.
People landing at Heathrow Airport will now be able to travel straight through central London to areas such as Farringdon and Canary Wharf in as little as 36 and 45 minutes respectively on the weekend and 40 and 51 minutes respectively during the week.
The launch of the integrated line will coincide with the introduction of a Sunday service. The frequency of services in the central section between Paddington and Whitechapel will increase from 12 trains per hour to up to 22 trains per hour in peak times and 16 trains per hour during off-peak. The final timetable, which will see 24 trains per hour during the peak between Paddington and Whitechapel, is on track to be in place by May 2023.
Ahead of the autumn changes, from Monday 5 September, extended opening hours will run on the Elizabeth line between Paddington and Abbey Wood from around 5:30am to around 11pm.
The brand-new Bond Street Elizabeth line station is also set to open by November mean journey times to the West End will fall significantly.
All the stations on this section of the line are step-free.
Passengers travelling from Shenfield in the east will be able to travel west all the way to Paddington without changing at Liverpool Street. Journeys to onward destinations, including to Heathrow Airport or towards Reading, can be made by changing trains on the same platform at any of the central London stations.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said, “The opening of the new Elizabeth line has been a landmark moment, not just for London but for the entire country, helping to contribute £42bn to the national economy.
"It’s great news that from November, Elizabeth line trains will run directly from Reading and Heathrow to Abbey Wood, and from Shenfield to Paddington, seven days a week. Services running on Sundays through central London will also make thousands more journeys quicker, easier and more comfortable.
"This enhanced capacity on the Elizabeth line will play a crucial role in encouraging people to make the most of the capital and will help support businesses in the heart of our city."
Since the Elizabeth line opened on 24 May 2022 more than 11 million journeys have been made between Paddington and Abbey Wood, which equals more than 200,000 daily journeys.
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August 23, 2022