On Tue, 28 Dec 2004 01:57:43 +0000 (UTC), "Jeffrey Asante"
wrote:

This is just rumour / speculation, however I have a hunch about what the
(current) route for Crossrail 2 is planned to be.

CLUES TO THE ROUTE ARE TO BE FOUND ALL OVER THE INTERNET.

This is what I have come up with. I just thought I would share it with
everyone.

· The central tunnel would run from just west of Clapham Junction to
Hackney Wick and Walthamstow (before St James’ Street Station).

· Central London stops would be at: Clapham Junction, Battersea Park,
Chelsea Bridge (stop somewhere south of Sloane Square, near Chelsea
Bridge Road), Victoria, Piccadilly Circus, Tottenham Court Road, King’s
Cross St Pancras, Dalston Junction and Hackney Central. All would be
sub surface stations.

· After Hackney Central, one branch would continue to a underground
Clapton station, and then rise to the surface, before serving all stops
on the Chingford Branch: St James’ Street, Walthamstow Central, Wood
Street, Highams Park and Chingford.

All lovely but you need at least 3 additional stations at Forest Road /
Hale End Road, Winchester Road and Chingford Hatch to deliver true
benefits to residents beyond Walthamstow Central if you are to deliver
tube type frequencies with this new service. While I accept journey time
may become a bit longer as a result of new stations it is essential that
new rail services properly serve the areas they run through. It is
irksome that people are crammed onto local bus services when a train
service could provide a better and faster service.

· Crossrail 2 would completely be a tube line, this would be cheaper
(allowing more tunnel and more sub surface stations), the whole route is
segregated, and a stop would be possible at Piccadilly Circus.

· One other part of the Crossrail 2 proposals (REMEMBERING THIS IS JUST
SPECULATION) would be the building of a Central Line station at
Shoreditch High Street. This would give interchange to the East London
Line Extensions, would allow the redevelopment of parts of Bishopsgate,
and crucially, give Chingford branch passengers a decent link to the
City (changing onto ELL at Dalston and again at Shoreditch High St).

Accepting that this is all speculation I doubt very much that anyone
using the Chingford line into Liverpool St will consider two changes at
Dalston and then again within striking distance of Liverpool St to be
remotely "decent". It typically takes 20 mins from Walthamstow to
Liverpool St - your suggested option would take at least half of that in
interchange and waiting time. That is a huge disbenefit in my view.

The proposal also does nothing to deal with the need (IMO) for
restoration of the old curve linking the Chingford Line to the Stratford
- Tottenham Hale line. This is a cheap and easy link to build and would
cut travel times into the Docklands area by a considerable margin from
Waltham Forest. Given the planned location of the Olympic facilities and
the supposed legacy benefits I find it odd that no one has thought to
restore a simple yet effective link.

While it would be lovely to imagine that this line will be built I think
I will die of shock if Crossrail 1 is ever built. While Ken is
undoubtedly in favour I just think the Treasury will never, ever provide
the government money that is needed to plug the funding gap. I'd also
prefer to see Thameslink 2060 actually built and using the expensive and
half redundant infrastructure now being built at Kings Cross.

Oh and a strategy for the proper development of all of London's
transport would also be a good thing.
--
Paul C


Admits to working for London Underground!