Construction of the UK Crossrail project is 75% complete, with half of the permanent track now laid.
The Crossrail route will pass through 40 stations from Reading and Heathrow in the west, through new twin-bore 21km tunnels to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “The opening of The Elizabeth line will be a landmark moment for London. It will help us deliver a modern, truly world-class transport system that allows us to deal with the growth in London’s population over the coming decades.
“Half the permanent track has now been completed, and being able to travel the Elizabeth line route from Custom House to Canary Wharf shows the huge progress that has been made."
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The project is being delivered by Crossrail, a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London (TfL) and is jointly sponsored by the Department for Transport.
Crossrail chief executive Andrew Wolstenholme said: “The remaining 25% of the programme will present a new set of challenges as we finish installing the critical components that will transform this major infrastructure project into an operating railway.
“The Elizabeth line will be vital to the future success of the capital and we’re fully focused on completing the delivery safely, on time and on budget, for our handover to TfL in 2018.”
The Elizabeth line will be used by more than 200 million passengers every year, increasing rail capacity in central London by 10% and reducing congestion underground.
The new railway is expected to provide reduced journey times, new business opportunities and a better connected transport network for London and the south-east.
Over the next year, the tunnels will be furnished with more than 15,000km of cable for power, lighting and communications systems through the tunnels.
Stations will be fitted with more than 4km of full height platform edge screens to help with the circulation of air and maintain temperature levels. Huge vent fans are planned to be installed at 18 locations in the route.
Image: Cable trays for power and communications systems installed in Elizabeth line tunnel. Photo: © Crossrail Ltd.
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