"Mike Bristow" wrote:
Like the Gospel Oak - Barking Line? 12 miles long, electrified lines
at both ends, with links to 4 more electrified lines, fairly heavily
used, and has capacity issues? I am not holding my breath.

A perfectly reasonable view, after all the wasted time and money on the
railways of recent years ... but I'm actually quite confident about the line
being electrified soon-ish, not because of the boringly obvious reason that
it would be the single most cost effective investment available on London's
railways, but because it's essential for the rail freight network.

While it's easy to argue that railfrieght is the longest running joke in UK
transport (in fact, I can't think of any alternative view!), the government
seems determined to maintain the illusion that rail will one day
miraculously remove a few billion tons off the roads. As if! Continuous
tinkering with small schemes / token gestures appears to be the chosen
method of keeping the dream alive.
--

Andrew