Elizabeth line trains to run seven days a week from Autumn, pledges TfL commissioner

Passenger numbers ‘encouraging’ but line not expected to hit pre-pandemic targets
Andy Byford at Paddington station on the opening day of the Elizabeth line
Ross Lydall

The Elizabeth line should start running a seven-day service by the Autumn, Transport for London commissioner Andy Byford signalled on Tuesday.

Longer opening hours are also likely, meaning early morning and late-night services. The £20bn line, which opened on May 24, currently only operates between 6.30am to 11pm, six days a week.

It is closed on Sundays to allow engineering work to continue to prepare the line to move from 12 train an hour at present to 22 trains an hour in the Autumn and the launch of through-running services - ending the current need to change trains at Paddington or Liverpool Street.

But Mr Byford, speaking to London TravelWatch, the passenger watchdog, on Tuesday morning, revealed that the number of passengers expected to use the Elizabeth line had been revised downwards.

Prior to the opening, TfL had estimated up to 250m journeys a year by 2026. It was now likely to be between 130m to 170m journeys a year, Mr Byford said - though it could reach 200m if the return to the office continued to accelerate.

About one in four Tube passengers and one in six bus passengers have yet to return on weekdays, in part due to the growth in working from home. The absence of international tourists has also had an impact on TfL revenues.

Every day is like Sunday: Elizabeth line trains will run seven days a week from the autumn
Ross Lydall

Mr Byford said he was “encouraged so far” by the number of passengers using the Elizabeth line but said it was too early to say how many were additional to the network and how many were transferring from other lines, such as the Central line.

Work is underway at TfL to “disaggregate” the numbers to measure the ability of the Elizabeth line to attract new customers.

End-to-end services, linking Shenfield, Heathrow and Reading, are due to start by May next year.

Mr Byford said there was capacity to further expand services, should demand increase. The digital signalling system can handle up to 30 trains an hour in the central section - though only 24 trains an hour are planned from next May - while the platforms are long enough to allow two extra carriages to be added to the nine-car trains, he said.

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