GovWire

Her Majesty the Queen today (23 February 2016) visited the under-construction Crossrail station at Bond Street as the Mayor of London, Boris Johnson MP, announced that the new railway will be known as the Elizabeth line in her honour.

The Elizabeth line will transform travel across the city, boosting the economy by billions of pounds and supporting thousands of new jobs and homes.

The Mayor was joined by Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin MP, Londons Transport Commissioner Mike Brown MVO, the Crossrail construction companys Chairman Terry Morgan, and Chief Executive Andrew Wolstenholme, as they gave Her Majesty a tour of the Bond Street station site. It will see 24 trains per hour in each direction when the central section of the Transport for London (TfL) run railway opens in 2018.

Her Majesty, who celebrates her 90th birthday in April, met a wide range of people involved in the construction of Crossrail, Europes largest infrastructure project. This included apprentices working on building the railway, engineers fitting out the station and drivers of the trains that will serve the line.

This marks the latest in a long-held association between the royal family and Londons transport network.Her Majesty became the first reigning monarch to travel on the London Underground in 1969, when she opened the Victoria line service.

In 1977, the Jubilee line was officially opened by HRH the Prince of Wales and was named to mark 25 years since Her Majestys accession to the throne. In the same year, Her Majesty opened Heathrow Central station (Terminals 1, 2, 3) on the Piccadilly line.

In the aftermath of the 7 July terrorist attack on the London Underground, Her Majesty unveiled a plaque at Aldgate station in 2010 remembering the lives of the 52 victims who had died. In addition, the celebrations of London Undergrounds 150th anniversary in 2013 saw HRH the Prince of Wales and HRH the Duchess of Cornwall take a trip on the Underground, and Her Majesty the Queen, HRH the Duke of Edinburgh and HRH the Duchess of Cambridge visit Baker Street station.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson MP, said:

As well as radically improving travel across our city, the Elizabeth line will provide a lasting tribute to our longest serving monarch.

The Rt Hon Patrick McLoughlin MP said:

Given Her Majesty the Queens long association with UK transport, it is very fitting that this vital link across our capital will be named the Elizabeth Line in her honour. This is an example of British engineering at its best and will transform the way people travel across London and beyond from 2018, bringing better and faster journeys, while boosting jobs and driving economic growth.

Mike Brown MVO, Londons Transport Commissioner, said:

This new railway is absolutely vital to meeting the needs of the capitals rapidly growing population. The Elizabeth line will transform the way people get across our city and will enable London to continue to succeed, contributing to the economic health of the entire country. In running this important new railway we will ensure that it serves as a fitting tribute to Her Majesty the Queen.

Stretching from Reading and Heathrow in the west across to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east, the Elizabeth line will change the way people travel around London and the south east and add much needed new capacity to Londons transport infrastructure.

When the railway fully opens it will significantly increase the capitals rail capacity, carrying over half a million passengers per day the same number of annual visitors to Buckingham Palace. Some 1.5 million people will have better access to the jobs and opportunities of Londons main employment centres, and an estimated 42 billion will have been added to the economy of the United Kingdom.

A fleet of brand new 200 metre long trains will run on the Elizabeth line, featuring 9 walk-through carriages, air conditioning, CCTV and real-time travel information.

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