CV3311 HIGHWAYS AND TRANSPORT

1. The main benefits to London that Crossrail will bring Crossrail is the single largest investment in London’s transport infrastructure. When operational it will change the capital's economic geography forever, strengthening its position as a leading global city and providing a major economic opportunity for London residents and businesses. Below are the main benefits that Crossrail will bring to London [1]:

Creating thousands of jobs and opportunities

Reduction congestion on transport network and improving transportconnectivity through journey time savings.

Decreasing journey times for instance the journey time from slough toTottenham Court Road will reduce from 55 to 36 minutes.

Enhancing accessibility hence improving people's access to jobs and otherfacilities; improving transport safety with reduced road accidents; andenvironmental improvement including reduction in Co2.

Benefiting the whole of London’s economy substantially, especiallyboroughs along the route alignment. Newham and Greenwich are forecastto secure £100 million and £85 million per annum due to Crossrailwhereas; along the route alignment in west London Hillingdon (£ 59 millionper annum) and Ealing (£57 million per annum) will also secure relativelyhigh level of benefits [2].

Area identity as several areas previously perceived as peripheral in theregional context will become significant in the future and land use changesas it will generate variety of different types of development.

1. What impacts are likely on the existing underground lines and stations once Crossrail is operational?

Cross rail will have both beneficial and detrimental impacts on the underground system. Listed below are some of the advantages and disadvantages:

Massively decreasing congestion on busy underground stations such as Liverpool Street and Stratford effectively reducing waiting times and hence minimising total journey time.

Aesthetically improving existing underground stations such as the large scale refurbishment of Whitechapel station is east London and many more.Thus as a whole making stations more visually appealing and user friendly.

Some would argue that instead of spending billions on a new project that London does not necessarily need, Modernise and Improve existing Tube lines and stations [3].

Underground could be teetering on the brink of insolvency and employees are made redundant [4].

1. Any significant impacts on the existing transportation infrastructure in London during the construction of Crossrail

Listed below are some of the significant impacts on the existing transportationinfrastructure:

Development of new and existing stations along the Crossrail route: For exampleWhitechapel station involves extensive redesign of the station to integrate newCrossrail platform within the existing station [5].The station is to be kept openduring the entire construction period hence presenting a key challenge inensuring passengers safety and managing space for both commuters andconstruction workers.

Paddington station is undergoing a major change during the Crossrailconstruction phase as the new design include: a new station servingCrossrail; a new station serving London Underground; a new entrance tothe station linking with major commercial developments; a commercialdevelopment above one of the new stations; a new taxi facility for BAAthat is designed to address the needs of international travellers viaHeathrow, plus a major new public realm above the Crossrail Station [6].

1. Where do you think any future extensions to Crossrail should beplanned?

Crossrail will have a western terminus at Maidenhead which is believed to offerpossible benefits to travellers into and out of London from the West. FutureCrossrail extension should be planned to connect Maidenhead with Reading.Reading Station is one of the busiest stations in the country outside London,acting as both an interchange station and as an origin and destination forjourneys [7]. Although there wasn't any commitment of extending Crossrailfurther west to Reading nevertheless, the Department of Transport believed thatit is only sensible to safeguard this corridor for potential extension. Safeguardingwill also allow us to carry out alternative works such as electrification that wouldenable future operational requirements to be met [8].

Extension will provide improvement to performance and reliability; it will alsoimprove the station itself for passengers. Reading Borough Council could find alot of new investments in the town attracting more investors and generating newbusinesses due to the extension of Crossrail [9].

2. Describe 3 transport options to get from your home to City University and compare the journey time for each option. One option should include using Crossrail into Farringdon for all or part of the journey. Assume you need to be at University by 10 am on a Friday morning

Home: Devonport Gardens (Redbridge Station)

Destination: City University

Option Route Duration(mins)

Bus 145 bus 257 bus 56 busWalk to University

100

LondonUnderground

Redbridge Liverpool St Barbican Walk to University

46

Crossrail Redbridge Stratford Farringdon Walk to University

37

Bus: It is apparent that the journey by the bus takes the longest. One of themain reasons for this is that there isn't one direct bus that goes from Redbridgeto the University; instead three buses have to be taken, and compared to theCrossrail route it is 2.7 times longer.

London Underground: It is the second quickest option partly becauseHammersmith and City line, Metropolitan line and Circle line run from Liverpoolstreet station to Barbican. Compared to Crossrail this option has a journey time1.2 times longer.

Crossrail: By far the quickest mean to get to University from Redbridge Stationsaving 9 minutes on journey time in comparison to the existing tube route.

References:[1]http://www.islington.gov.uk/publicrecords/documents/Environment/Pdf/ldf_pack/AAP_evidence_base/BCE31_Crossrail_Regeneration_Benefits_Strategic_Prospectus_(draft_final).pdf [Accessed on 13/11/2013]

[2]http://www.crossrail.co.uk [Accessed on 13/11/2013]

[3]http://www.standard.co.uk/news/crossrail-will-eat-money-kill-it-boris-and-save-the-bankrupt-tube-instead-6761783.html [Accessed on 16/11/2013]

[4]https://www.thefpa.co.uk/mainwebsite/resources/document/crossrail%20challenge.pdf [Accessed on 16/11/2013]

[5]http://www.activerisk.com/wp-content/uploads/Active-Risk-Crossrail-Case-Study.pdf [Accessed on 16/11/2012]

[6]http://www.worldarchitecturenews.com/index.php?fuseaction=wanappln.projectview&upload_id=17204 [Accessed on 16/11/2013]

[7]http://www.crossrail.co.uk/news/press-releases/impact-crossrail-construction-to-be-lessened-as-eight-shafts-are-removed-from-tunnel-design#.UJ6RYcWl5rk[Accessed on 19/11/2013]

[8]http://www.crossrail.co.uk/news/press-releases/network-rail-boosts-crossrail-reading-projects#.UKK_LIcj6Xs [Accessed on 19/11/2013]

[9]http://www.crossrail.co.uk/news/press-releases/potential-new-crossrail-route-extension-safeguarded#.UKK6YYcj6Xs [Accessed on 20/11/2013]

http://www.crossrail.co.uk/assets/library/document/c/original/c05additionalsafeguarding.pdf [Accessed on 21/11/2013]