In message
, at
00:05:17 on Thu, 4 Dec 2008, MIG remarked:
And where is the obvious place "past Shenfield"? Colchester is the
nearest that makes sense.

Southend Victoria? It is as close to Central London as Reading is.

Why would a commuter from Southend want to take a Crossrail train rather
than the much more direct line to Fenchurch St?

I am not all that convinced that many people want to travel through
London at all, although east - west might be more significant than
north - south.

I agree (although that's somewhat orthogonal to finding the quickest way
from Southend to the City).

Having spent a couple of years with an office at London Bridge, a
through train from Cambridge would have saved messing around at Kings
Cross, and partly because of the availability of the through train I've
hopped between Luton and Gatwick a few times recently. If I was still
living in Mid-Essex a through train would help me quite often, as my
destination is more likely to be somewhere between Bank and Paddington
than near Liverpool St.
--
Roland Perry