The first trains on the Elizabeth line to transport passengers through the new tunnels under London departed on Tuesday morning, marking the beginning of an era of greater speed, space and comfort – “suitable for the Queen and Londoners”, Mayor Sadiq Khan said.
Hundreds of people endured the rain to line up outside for the first train from Paddington through central London on the line originally known as the Crossrail – finally ready for service a week before the Queen’s platinum anniversary celebrations.
Crowds were descending the escalator in Paddington when the Elizabeth Line opened this morning. Photo: Jill Mead / Guardian Andy Byford, London’s Commissioner for Transport, and London Mayor Sadiq Khan get off the first train on the Elizabeth Line to carry passengers at Faringdon Station. Photo: Kirsty O’Connor / PA
Cheers greeted the opening of the gates at 6.18am when Hahn and TfL Commissioner Andy Byford, at the head of the queue, stepped back to allow the first customers to walk past them without wiping their feet on the way to the new station.
Khan said he was “so excited – like that little boy on Christmas Eve waiting for Santa.” Last week, the monarch visited Paddington, officially opening the line three and a half years after it was first invited. “Now we know he’s suitable for a queen – and for Londoners,” he added.
Vernon Kerswell of Wimbledon, first in line at midnight. Photo: Jill Mead / The Guardian
London’s landmarks from the Eye to Tower Bridge were illuminated in purple overnight to mark the occasion. Vernon Kerswell, a 34-year-old train designer, meanwhile, led the queue at midnight in front of Paddington. “It was a long night, but really exciting,” he said. Hundreds more had joined by 4 a.m., with those in front coming from Scotland, Dorset and elsewhere to be among the first to board.
Among the several families who had taken their children on a historic trip was Nick Stevenson of Christchurch and his seven-year-old son, Eddie. “We are cold, wet, but happy,” he said.
Nick Stevenson and his son Eddie are seven. Eddie said he had to get up at 4.22 in the morning and they stayed at a hotel nearby. When I asked why he got up so early, Eddie answered; “I really like trains.” Photo: Jill Mead / The Guardian
At the bottom of the platform, most said it was worth the wait. As crowds jammed the platform, applause greeted the PA, who was “pleased to announce the first train east to Abbey Wood.” A minute later he backed away – “this one doesn’t stop here” – but today no one minded.
More applause greeted the opening of the virgin doors of the platform. And even with the crowds, everyone who wants gets a place.
“It’s just amazing,” said Agnes Sarkadi-Smith of Arundel, who had stayed overnight in London with her son Sawyer, 11, arriving in line at 4 a.m. and baking Elizabeth’s tartlets to hand out for the occasion. “We haven’t done enough for everyone,” she added. They would visit every station on the line today, Sawyer said.
Agnes and Sawyer Sarkadi-Smith and his cakes for the Elizabeth line. Photo: Jill Mead / The Guardian
Just seven minutes by train, the VIPs left Faringdon – “We’re here now!” Someone shouted in surprise.
In less than 20 minutes, the train reached Abbey Wood, who would have felt a long and tense journey through the city from Paddington just yesterday. A smaller crowd – probably from more hardcore rail enthusiasts – lined up on the street in front of the new station for what was technically a little over a minute, the first train on Elizabeth’s line to leave.
Construction of the £ 19 billion line (£ 20 billion, including trains) began in 2009, after decades of planning. The central section was originally scheduled to open in 2018, before the overly optimistic schedule collapsed when engineers tried to build an extremely complex railway and 10 new stations in central London.
By the autumn, the Elizabeth line will run as three separate railways, with passengers from the former TfL Rail services to the west or east having to change at Paddington or Liverpool Street stations to continue on the newly opened central section.
London transport chiefs expect many more commuters to invade the line after September, when trains will run directly from Shenfield, Reading and Heathrow to stops in central London. In May next May, the services will run the width of the Elizabeth Line, with up to 24 trains per hour at peak hours.
Add Comment