According to Transport for London (TfL), the new railway is the most significant addition to the capital's transport network for a generation. It will increase central London's rail capacity by 10%, the largest single increase in the capital's transport capacity in more than 70 years.
Set to serve up to 200 million passengers each year, the Elizabeth line will help reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 2.5 million tonnes over the 120-year life of the railway, according to Crossrail.
The line is more than 100km long and connects Reading and Heathrow in the west with central London and then on to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east. Currently services are not running on Sundays to allow for a series of testing and software updates in preparation for more intensive services later in the year. TfL said that full services across the entire route are set to be introduced by May 2023.
Alstom supplied the trains, technology and infrastructure for this new line and will also maintain the trains. The trains are Alstom’s Class 345 Aventra EMUs. The firm supplied 70 seven- and nine-car Aventra EMUs, which were designed and built at its Derby factory and will be maintained by Alstom in West London. Alstom will maintain the trains for the next 32 years as part of the rolling stock and services provision contract.
The Alstom-led ATC joint venture, meanwhile, formed with partners TSO and Costain, has designed, constructed, tested, and commissioned critical infrastructure works for the new line. ATC has delivered the traction power supply for the trains, incorporating Alstom’s in-house feeding systems, non-traction power supplies for the stations, shafts and portals, tunnel ventilation systems and other electrical and mechanical systems, laid the track (including 5500 HAS sleepers), and built a new maintenance depot at Plumstead.
Siemens Mobility was also involved in the development of the new Elizabeth line. The firm delivered the central section signaling and the communication and control systems for the new line on behalf of Crossrail Ltd. According to Siemens, the Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) signaling, and control system will enable high-frequency and automated train operation for the central section of the Elizabeth line. The technology was designed, manufactured, installed, tested, and commissioned at Siemens Mobility facilities in both the UK and Germany.
Ricardo Rail, meanwhile, revealed that the opening of London’s Elizabeth Line to passengers ended one of the largest and most complex assessments ever performed by Ricardo Certification.
As the appointed Approved Body (ApBo) for the construction of the central tunneled section, its experts received more than 6,000 evidence submissions, including design drawings, safety cases and hazard records, which have been assessed against an extensive range of technical specifications. The firm’s assessments gave confidence to stakeholders that all legal requirements were being met as construction progressed.
In addition to the ApBo role, Ricardo was also the central section’s appointed Designated Body (DeBo), to assess compliance with the UK’s National Technical Rules, and the Assessment Body (AsBo) for both Crossrail and Rail for London Infrastructure, the infrastructure manager of the central section. As the AsBo, it was Ricardo’s responsibility to determine whether procedures for managing hazards and evaluating risk were compliant with the Common Safety Method on Risk Evaluation and Assessment Regulation, a mandatory requirement for major rail projects.
“We are proud to have supported the Elizabeth Line from detailed design to the launch of passenger services,” said Simon Whitehouse, Ricardo’s UK Certification Director.