5 October 2007
Gordon Brown has confirmed that the Crossrail project to build a rail line across London has the funding to go ahead.
On a visit to the Crossrail offices in central London this morning, the PM viewed maps and model carriages from the project that aims to install a £16 billion rail link through the capital, joining Maidenhead in west London to Essex in the east. Mr Brown said that the construction of the line would be of "enormous importance, not just for London but for the whole country” and would generate up to 30,000 new jobs.
He said:
"For decades the idea of Crossrail - a major new railway link connecting central London, the City and Canary Wharf to Heathrow and to commuter areas east and west of the capital - has been a long-held dream for business and Londoners alike.
"I am pleased to be able to confirm to you all today that we have now reached final agreement on the funding that is needed. Full details will be announced next week but I can say today that both the private and public sectors have made major financial commitments and that the project will now definitely proceed."
Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly also attended the meeting with Crossrail executives along with London mayor Ken Livingstone. Mr Livingstone said that the new rail line would be "the key to the next 20 years of economic development" of the capital.
Construction work is set to begin in 2010 with the first trains expected to be running in 2017. The planned 118-kilometre track will house 38 new stations and enable an estimated 200 million passenger journeys a year.
Image copyright: Reuters
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