The transformation of the Thameslink route takes a big step forward today as two key Government departments (Department for Transport and Department for Communities & Local Government) agreed to grant planning permission and legal powers to Network Rail to ‘re-build’ the Thameslink route.

The Thameslink project will more than double passenger capacity on one of Europe’s busiest stretches of railway - the core route through London Bridge, Blackfriars and Farringdon - benefiting tens of thousands of passengers daily. The scheme will also increase the number of stations used by direct north / south services by over 200% from the present 51 to 172 and increase the possible length of trains from the present eight carriage services to 12. 

The future of the £3.5bn project now rests on a funding decision. Network Rail will work to support the Department for Transport as it seeks to establish a funding mechanism. An early decision would enable the company to deliver substantial passenger benefits before 2012.

John Armitt, Network Rail’s Chief Executive, said: “This is a landmark decision that underlines growing confidence in Network Rail to deliver major improvements on Britain’s railways. “We are now one step closer to getting the green light for an essential congestion-beating rail project on one of the busiest parts of our network. Passengers want easier, more frequent, direct and comfortable journeys. The Thameslink scheme offers exactly this, and an early funding decision would enable us to deliver significant benefits before 2012.”

There would be a number of key benefits for passengers, including: Increased capacity: more trains and more carriages. Up to 24 trains per hour through the core route (presently eight) during the peak period with the added benefit of delivering 12 carriage services rather than the present eight, Less overcrowding: easing passenger congestion across the Thameslink route and reducing congestion on the tube (particularly the Northern and Victoria lines) with much improved tube access at the new Farringdon, Blackfriars and London Bridge stations. More routes and stations: more routes, more journey possibilities and more stations.  The new Thameslink route would serve 172 stations (presently 51) enabling passengers to travel from north to south without the inconvenience of changing trains, or from train to tube (e.g. passengers would be able to travel from Cambridge to Gatwick Airport without changing). Simplifying track and modernising signals: reducing bottlenecks and logjams on a busy network that is 150 years old and not designed to cope with modern demands Better stations: major investment at London Bridge, Blackfriars, Farringdon and platform extensions at 50 outlying stations to accommodate longer trains. Blackfriars would become the first London station to span the river Thames, Farringdon would become an interchange with Crossrail, while London Bridge would be completely rebuilt and modernised with capacity for an extra 60,000 people during the peak. Better Olympic journeys: connecting more people directly to the special ‘Olympic Javelin’ service from St Pancras International to Stratford. A direct interchange with Crossrail:  The scheme offers major improvements on North to South rail services across London and the South East, complementing the proposed East to West London Crossrail service 

In a written statement to Parliament, the Secretary of State for Transport and the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government will today grant legal powers and planning consents to Network Rail for the £3.5bn ‘Thameslink Programme’. This does not amount to a final go-ahead for the project as funding has yet to be agreed

The Transport and Works Act Order gives planning permission and statutory powers to Network Rail, together with listed building and conservation area consents and consents for consequential rail closures. It follows the recommendations of the planning inspectorate’s public inquiry last year into the scheme.

The scheme will take estimated seven years to build with the ability to ‘pause’ the scheme for the Olympics. The project will start to deliver passenger benefits within the first three years

Timeline:
1997, November - Proposals for Thameslink 2000 are submitted within the Transport and Works Act (TWA) Order of November 1997
1999, September - Changes submitted following extensive public consultation
2000, June - Public inquiry starts
2001, May - Public inquiry ends
2002, July - The inquiry inspector's report is published by the ODPM, supporting the scheme in principle but calling for more detail on certain specific aspects of the project
2005, September - Public inquiry reopens to consider revised plans on the specific issues raised by the planning inspector
2005, December - Public inquiry ends and inspector compiles report for Government departments
2006, October - Thameslink gets planning green light and Network Rail granted legal powers to build the scheme