Elizabeth line

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 (till May 2025)[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.