A massive programme of improvement works is underway to upgrade the London Underground network to provide more trains, greater reliability, better stations and a range of other benefits for passengers.
Theresa Villiers MP has written an article to update her Chipping Barnet constituents on these vital improvements to our transport infrastructure which from part of the Government’s long term economic plan. Theresa writes:
For many years, I have been campaigning for improvements to the Northern Line and the London Underground network. When I was Minister for Transport, I worked hard to secure the funding for the tube modernisation programme, to ensure that it went ahead despite the spending reductions needed to deal with the deficit the Government inherited from Labour.
While my role in Government no longer covers transport, I retain a very close interest in the tube network both as a London MP and a passenger. Better infrastructure is a crucial part of building a sustainable and balanced economic recovery. As well as being good news for the quality of life for commuters, better transport can play a vital role in boosting London’s economy and generating jobs and prosperity for my constituents in Chipping Barnet.
The 2012 Games saw millions of visitors come to London with the underground network experiencing its busiest days ever. The Games confirmed London as a truly world class city and the Conservative Mayor and the Conservative-led Government are determined to deliver the transport system it needs if it is to continue to be a powerhouse for economic growth in this country.
As a result of the funding settlement agreed by the Government in the 2010 spending review, TfL has been able to press ahead with the long awaited upgrade of the tube network, which had stalled for years under Labour. Greater certainty over funding has enabled TfL to deliver a range of efficiencies across its work, maximising the impact of the taxpayer’s money it spends.
There is much still to be done. The work will continue for some years to come. But real progress has been made.
There has been a 40% reduction in delays (by 2011 compared to 2007) and TfL are on track to cut delays by a further 30% by 2015.
77 million journeys are now made by step-free routes each year and 140 tube, overground and DLR stations have become step free, including High Barnet. 50 more stations will be step-free by 2023 across the tube, overground and Crossrail network and it is expected that 227 million journeys will be step free each year.
New trains have been introduced to a number of routes including the tube’s first ever air conditioned carriages (on the Metropolitan, Hammersmith and City, Circle and District Lines). Additional rolling stock is on the way for the Northern Line too.
Capacity on the network has been significantly increased to relieve crowding; London Underground now runs one of the most frequent metro services in the world. That includes 34 trains per hour on the Victoria Line and 30 per hour on the Jubilee Line at peak times.
The Northern Line upgrade will deliver further capacity increases. The new signalling system for the Northern Line is due to be ready this year. This will allow TfL to increase service frequency to 24 trains per hour at peak times, serving 11,000 extra passengers, with 18% faster journey times on average. By 2022, the proposal is to increase frequency to at least 30 trains per hour serving 18,000 extra passengers per hour at peak times. That will deliver a capacity increase of almost 50%.
Crossrail is the biggest engineering project in western Europe. It will add 10% to London’s rail based public transport capacity and will be fully integrated in the TfL network. The first services will start to run next year. Trains will begin running on the new core tunnel section in 2018 and the whole network will be up and running by 2019.
Many major stations are being redeveloped to provide better and safer facilities for passengers. Stations like Farringdon, Blackfriars and King’s Cross St Pancras have been transformed. Work is underway at many more stations including Tottenham Court Road, Bond Street and Victoria where complex and advanced engineering techniques are helping to keep these projects on time and on budget. Bank, Holborn and Camden Town have all recently been added to the improvement programme.
Improving information for passengers is another crucial part of modernising the tube. Better passenger information is now being provided through a new TfL website, twitter feeds and introduction of wi-fi in more stations.
For more information on progress on modernising the tube network, click on the follow link.
https://www.tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/fit-for-the-future.pdf