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Notes to editors

The London & South East RUS builds on the series of first generation RUSs, published between 2005 and 2010, covering routes into and around the capital. Given the length of time which has passed since some of these earlier publications, and the current circumstances which now apply, updates are needed in several areas which this second generation RUS examines. As a result it represents our latest analysis with respect to an appropriate strategy to 2031 for the railway network across the south east of England as a whole.

The RUS process is led by Network Rail on behalf of the rail industry. A number of rail industry organisations are involved in the process including train operating companies, freight operating companies, ATOC, the ORR, Passenger Focus, Department for Transport and Transport for London. Wider stakeholders such as local authorities and rail user groups are also involved.

A Draft for Consultation was published in December 2010 and underwent a 12 week consultation period. It will become established 60 days after publication unless the Office of Rail Regulation (ORR) issues a notice of objection within this period. See www.networkrail.co.uk/rus for further information.

Recommendations by route

West Coast Main Line

• The West Coast Main Line has very limited opportunity for further commuter capacity, other than running all trains at maximum length.
• The proposed High Speed Rail line from London to Birmingham (and eventually the north-west, north-east and Scotland) will not only relieve what would otherwise be a major capacity gap on the West Coast Main Line, but also free up considerable capacity on the existing line for commuter services to areas such as Milton Keynes, Northampton and Rugby.

East Coast Main Line

• Planned infrastructure enhancements and the Intercity Express Programme will provide extra capacity on this route. In the longer term the proposed High Speed Rail network will alleviate north-south capacity constraints.
• Closer to London, the Thameslink Programme will alleviate suburban capacity constraints and increase connectivity, as many services will be able to continue through the Thameslink tunnels rather than terminating at King’s Cross.
• Routes to Moorgate will also be alleviated by Thameslink, though additional trains to Moorgate itself are forecast as necessary towards the end of this strategy.

Midland Main Line

• The Thameslink Programme will provide a large amount of extra capacity, allowing significant numbers of outer suburban services to be extended from 8-car to 12-car formation.
• Electrification of the route could enable it to use vehicles similar to those being used under the Intercity Express Programme on Kings Cross and Paddington routes. Demand will also be alleviated by transferring journeys onto the north-east leg of the proposed High Speed Rail network.

Great Western

• Existing strategy is based around a combination of several schemes, notably the Intercity Express Programme, electrification, Reading remodelling and Crossrail services to Maidenhead. However given constraints at London Paddington and on its approaches this does not directly facilitate extra main line trains into London in the high peak, so further interventions appear to be necessary.
• Incremental changes recommended to provide some additional capacity include extending Crossrail route services to Reading, lengthening services from Oxford and Newbury from 8-car to 12-car formation and running 16 rather than 15 main trains in the high peak. However this is not forecast to be sufficient to cater for the forecast growth.
• The RUS recommends further consideration of a major re-cast of the timetable and service structure on the Great Western Main Line – seen as the only realistically viable way to meet forecast demand on the route. This would see four extra fast main line services from Reading (or beyond) to Paddington in the busiest peak hours, utilising the existing Heathrow Express paths.
• The RUS seeks to run additional services between the Great Western route and the Crossrail tunnels, reducing the need for trains to terminate at Paddington. The combination of the Reading extension and a 10 trains per hour Crossrail service to Heathrow would involve 16 rather than 10 Crossrail trains on the GWML at peak times.
• A western connection to Heathrow is also recommended for detailed consideration, which would allow services to be extended to both Reading (via Slough) and Staines.

West Anglia

• On the assumption that all trains are lengthened to the maximum possible, peak capacity is not the main driver of change on this route.
• Driven by stakeholder aspirations to improve journey times and frequencies as well as links with Stratford/Docklands, the RUS recommends implementation of a four trains per hour Lea Valley to Stratford service. Further work is required to determine the specific infrastructure requirements to achieve this.
• The RUS notes that the West Anglia corridor is one possible eventual destination for a future ‘Crossrail line 2’. Were this to go ahead, it would remove current capacity constraints at Liverpool Street. The case for four-tracking of the Lea Valley should be kept under review in this context.

Great Eastern

• Existing strategy is based on the lengthening of all peak main line trains to 12-car and the replacement of ‘intercity’ vehicles with electric multiple units. However even if these are implemented additional capacity in Essex and the east London suburbs will still be required to meet forecast demand.
• The recommended solution is the upgrade of existing freight lines between Stratford and Bow in east London, to provide six lines all the way between Stratford and Liverpool Street (two of which would be the Crossrail tunnels). This would enable 28 main line trains in the busiest peak hour by 2031, with an interim 26 trains per hour in the early 2020s.

Chilterns

• The Evergreen 3 project, which is well under way, will provide significant improvements in capacity, journey times and a new London Marylebone to Oxford service.
• Further increases to capacity could be achieved without the need for further infrastructure enhancements, either through longer trains and/or timetable changes

Kent

• The capacity strategy for Kent is based around the construction of both Thameslink and the south east spur of Crossrail, as well as further improvements to services on High Speed 1. In addition, platform lengthening in the suburban area is now ongoing which will allow some 12-car trains to operate.
• Full implementation of 12-car suburban services would provide additional capacity, but further work is required to overcome significant operational issues, including platform lengths at Charing Cross and Woolwich Dockyard.
• In the long term, the potential extension of the London Underground Bakerloo line to Hayes would provide significant extra capacity into Charing Cross.

Sussex

• The strategy for services into London Bridge and Victoria is based around a combination of train lengthening and the Thameslink Programme. The main opportunities for train lengthening are the Redhill line (more 12-car trains), the East Grinstead line (lengthening from 8-car to 12-car), the Sydenham line (8-car to 10-car) and all routes via Balham to Victoria (8-car to 10-car)
• Further train lengthening schemes are also recommended for the future, including the Uckfield line (10-car, based on the current diesel stock) and the Purley corridor (combine Caterham / Tattenham Corner trains to make 10-car services, with a view to making this 12-car at a later date.)
• A recommendation is made to insert a Clapham Junction stop on some morning peak Gatwick Express services which start from Brighton, which would make best use of capacity overall.
• The RUS notes that the above approach does not fully resolve the gap on the Brighton Main Line so standing for durations longer than the recommended 20 minutes is likely to remain an issue.

South West Main Line

• An ongoing project to lengthen suburban platforms is underway which will allow 10-car trains to operate. As a result of this scheme, there is not forecast to be a suburban capacity gap but in the longer term further train lengthening to 12-car could possibly be needed if demand grows above that currently forecast.
• On the longer distance main line services, trains generally already run at maximum length and there is no space on the tracks to introduce extra services. Some limited lengthening opportunities to reduce the capacity gap are recommended, such as lengthening Salisbury line and Guildford via Cobham services, but this would only make a marginal difference.
• The options to run double-deck and 16-car trains have been assessed fully and although technically possible, they are not recommended because they would be very expensive and would not deliver the capacity required.
• A long term scheme for further consideration would include building a new track within the existing railway boundary from near Surbiton to Clapham Junction, in addition to infrastructure enhancements at Woking and between Clapham Junction and Waterloo. Protection of the land to allow such a scheme to be implemented is recommended.
• As an interim measure it is possible that new signalling technology might allow a small increase in service levels, though this is currently unproven.
• A further option would be a variant on the Crossrail line 2 scheme, running via Clapham Junction and Wimbledon. This would enable some new services to run, avoiding the constraints at Waterloo.

Windsor lines

• Plans are already underway to re-open the Waterloo International terminal which will enable the planned service increase on routes via Putney to increase from 15 to 16 during the busiest hour.
• If demand requires, it is possible to run two additional trains during the busiest hour (increase from 16 to 18), both of which will be routed via Hounslow. This wouldn’t need any additional infrastructure.
• Additonal capacity will also be provided by the platform lengthening scheme now underway to lengthen trains to 10-cars on the lines as far as Virginia Water. Extension of 10-car operations to Reading is recommended. 12-car could be considered for the longer term but is not currently anticipated as required.

London orbital routes

• Once sufficient dual voltage rolling stock becomes available, running a half-hourly peak service from Watford Junction or beyond to the West London Line would be a priority.
• The capacity strategy on orbital routes is based around lengthening as follows:
  • Southern West London services to 8-car
  • London Overground North London Line and West London Line services to 6-car
  • London Overground East London Line services to 5-car
  • London Overground Gospel Oak – Barking services to 3 or 4-car

New lines

• The RUS includes early development work on a number of new or extended routes in the London area. This includes:
  • Improving rail access to Heathrow Airport, with possible western connections as described above.
  • Crossrail extensions, with an emerging scenario of a 24 trains per hour peak Crossrail service all running to/from locations west of Paddington, serving Heathrow Airport (10tph) the Great Western Main Line (6tph) and an extension to the West Coast Main Line (8tph). This would eliminate the need for 14 Crossrail trains per peak hour to start their journey at Paddington as currently planned.
  • Early thinking regarding a Crossrail route 2, on a south-west to north-east alignment. This is now envisaged as running via Euston and Clapham Junction. Away from central London it could be extended on National Rail lines via Wimbledon and the West Anglia routes.
  • A possible southern extension to the Bakerloo line, as described earlier.
  • Interfaces with High Speed Rail in the London area; at Euston, Old Oak Common and the North London Line.
  • Croxley Link, Docklands Light Rail extensions, Tramlink extensions and East-West Rail.