Map of the Alignment

Deputy Speaker,

It is no secret that London’s railways are some of the most congested in the entirety of the nation. Indeed, despite the dense mesh of railways criss-crossing our capital and their high-frequency, quality service it often feels impossible to find a service that isn’t completely packed during peak hours. And whilst we have been investing in services across the nation, it’s clear that London continues to need further investment to improve the railways that enable the quality service residents have come to expect from the city.

The connection between Northwestern London and Southwestern London stands out in this regard as a place where that quality connection is lacking: it takes over an hour to travel between Hounslow and West Hampstead as of today, with a transfer being required at Clapham Junction, despite the two parts of London being merely fifteen kilometres away from each other. It is not exactly the kind of service we should expect within London, especially when we are considering the connection to important stations such as Old Oak Common in the future.

This government has thus decided to support and co-fund plans for the West London Orbital Railway: a relatively cheap project that seeks to reuse some existing alignments, upgrade tracks and improve service by creating a new, direct, electric railway service running between Hounslow and West Hampstead operated as an Overground service by Transport for London. The government has costed the project at around £260 million, including the upgrade of various stations along the line, electrification of stretches of track and improvements to the rights of way to allow speeds of a minimum of 80 kilometres of hour to be reached in regular service along the entirety of the line. Of the £260 million in total costs, the government has agreed to fund £130 million, with the remainder of the costs covered by the Greater London Council and the relevant Borough Councils along the line.

This debate closes on 18th of April 2024 at 10PM BST