London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

London's new Elizabeth Line to finally open on May 24

London's new Elizabeth Line to finally open on May 24

The long-awaited Elizabeth Line is officially opening on May 24, Transport for London has announced.

It will initially operate as three separate railways, with services from Reading, Heathrow and Shenfield connecting with the central tunnels from this autumn.

The Crossrail project had an original budget of £14.8billion, but the Government pledged an extra £4billion to help get it open.

The opening date kept on getting pushed back, and it will now open nearly four years later than intended.

For now there will be no end-to-end trains, meaning trains from Reading and Heathrow will go to Paddington, and Shenfield trains to Liverpool Street – so you’ll have to change at these stations.

A direct line from Heathrow/Reading to the eastern part of the line is expected to arrive by late 2022.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: ‘I’m delighted that our world-class new Elizabeth line will be opening to passengers later this month, helping build a better London – one which is safer, fairer, greener and more prosperous city for all Londoners.

‘This is the most significant addition to our transport network in decades, and will revolutionise travel across the capital and the South East – as well as delivering a £42billion boost to the whole UK economy and hundreds of thousands of new homes and jobs.



The Elizabeth line will connect Reading and Essex via central London


‘Green public transport is the future and the opening of the Elizabeth line is a landmark moment for our capital and our whole country, particularly in this special Platinum Jubilee year.

‘I’m so proud of this new line and can’t wait for millions of passengers to start riding on the Elizabeth Line from 24 May.’

This month, the line connecting Paddington and Abbey Wood will open, operating 12 trains per hour from Monday to Saturday, 6.30am to 11pm.

Initially trains will not run on Sundays to allow for testing and software updates.

Work is still ongoing at the Bond Street Elizabeth line station, meaning it won’t open on May 24.

Services currently running as TfL Rail in the east and west sections will be rebranded to the new Elizabeth line.

A full timetable won’t be ready until 2023 and the opening still depends on final safety approvals.

But once the service is fully up and running, it is expected to increase the capacity of London’s public transport by 10% – serving around 200million people each year.

TfL released this map this morning showing how the initial Crossrail services will operate from May 24


There will be a special service on Sunday, June 5 for the Platinum Jubilee weekend running from around 8am to 10pm.

More observant passengers noticed an odd inconsistency as new signs for the Elizabeth Line were unveiled at Tube stations.

The purple signs say ‘Elizabeth Line’, but travelling around the capital, which is a different style of labelling to other routes, like ‘Victoria’, ‘Piccadilly’ and ‘Northern’.

Economist Daniel Tomlinson tweeted a picture, writing: ‘Feeling very disappointed in TfL this morning.

‘Deciding to label it “Elizabeth line” rather than “Elizabeth” is a striking error. As
@ClioChris says, are we now to call it the Elizabeth Line Line? Change here for the Central, Circle, and Elizabeth Line Lines.’

Although it is technically a new ‘mode’ of transport, such as the Overground or DLR, rather than a new Tube line, this won’t mean much to the average commuter.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×