TfL has revealed it wants to buy more Elizabeth line trains to cope with demand from HS2.
Under the plans, confirmed in TfL board papers, the Department for Transport is being lobbied to provide funding for more trains on the Elizabeth line to support HS2’s terminus at Old Oak Common.
The station, which is currently being constructed in west London, will have an interchange with the Elizabeth line into central London, piling demand on the service.
Earlier this year, ministers announced that the construction of HS2 between Birmingham and Old Oak Common will be prioritised, with the final terminus at Euston being delayed.
The TfL papers state that “given the likelihood of a prolonged period” of Old Oak Common being the final terminus for HS2, it has endorsed buying more trains on the Elizabeth line.
Interim Commissioner of TfL Andy Lord said: “This would give us the flexibility to increase service levels in future to optimise the delivery of HS2 and support UK manufacturing in Derby.
“We continue to work with DfT to confirm financial support. In addition, we want to ensure that all journeys are catered for by offering level boarding at Old Oak Common Elizabeth line station, which is not currently part of the station design.”
A lack of level boarding would mean wheelchair users would be required to use manual ramps to board trains.
Old Oak Common is scheduled to open in the early 2030s, with HS2’s final terminus at Euston delayed until as late as 2041.
Despite fears this means the planned terminus at Euston could never materialise, Rishi Sunak has insisted the Government is still committed to it.
The high-speed HS2 network is designed to add capacity to rail services between London and Birmingham, and eventually further north to Crewe and Manchester.
It comes after Mayor of London Sadiq Khan warned the Government in March that by 2030 the eastbound sections of the Elizabeth line from Reading and Heathrow to Paddington would be overcrowded without extra capacity.
He said: “The levels of crowding on the trains would be comparable to Tube journeys in central London and would be at odds with customer expectations of the new HS2 services.”
TfL figures show the Elizabeth line is carrying 3.5m passengers a week – and at times almost four million.
