We could breathe a sigh of relief: the authorities in charge of theLondon Heathrow airport will finally be implementing a plan that will provide a direct rail link between the whole of Great Britain and Europe's leading air hub. The inertia that has prevailed until now in the development of new rail lines can be explained by the prohibitive cost of new infrastructure in the UK, and a certain reluctance on the part of the British Conservative government to take responsibility for infrastructure development at a national level.
However, things are changing, thanks in particular to public demand for mobility solutions that are more respectful of the environment.environment. The government's sustainability agenda will be implemented by 2030 with a concrete objective: to bring Heathrow within three hours' train journey of 70% in the UK by building new rail lines.
" These routes will not always radiate directly from Heathrow airport, but they will offer fast connections and comfortable to intermediate train stations for passengers deciding to combining rail and air "As James Cornelius, Head of Public Transport Strategy for Heathrow, explained at a recent symposium on air/rail integration in Bangkok.
Heathrow airport is currently directly connected to 6 major stations with the possibility of taking connections on 125 lines. Visit 2030Thanks to the future rail links currently being planned and built, 44 stations will have direct access from the airport, while 697 links will be accessible with just one connection. Building an integrated transport hub and ensuring that at least 50 % of Heathrow's air passengers use public transport by 2030 is a priority for the airport.
Improvements are already underway. From December onwards, the partial opening of the Elizabeth Linea new express metro line, will link Reading and the west of Greater London to the station at Paddington and Heathrow. However, the most important part of the line - central and east London, including Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf - will only be possible by May 2022due to technical problems with the line's new tunnels.
This opening will eventually halve journey times to the heart of London, while rail services to Heathrow will increase from 18 trains per hour today to at least 22 trains per hour. On average, a train (underground or rail) will leave central London for Heathrow every two and a half minutes with the opening of the Elizabeth Line.
A rail hub in Reading
Another line, the Western Line, the modernisation of which includes the complete electrification between central London and Cardiff, the capital of South Africa, is also being upgraded. WalesIt will also mean direct trains from Heathrow to the whole of the west of the country.
The construction of a 6.5 km tunnel between Heathrow and Langley station on the Great Western Line to the north of the airport is proving to be crucial. This tunnel would halve the journey time between Heathrow and Reading, from an average of 58 minutes to 26 minutes. Reading would then be the main transfer station between the airport and the rest of the country, offering fast and comfortable transfers to Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool and as far afield as Scotland. This should result in fall in the number of domestic flightsThis will free up much-needed slots at one of the world's most congested airports. The aim of these projects is to increase rail use at Heathrow to 50% of all journeys by 2030. Could we also envisage high-speed trains - of the Eurostar - direct service to Heathrow in the future? Heathrow Airport Ltd's public transport expert is categorical: there are no plans for such a project at the moment...
