Crossrail recieves green light

The £16 billion project to build a rail line across London is thought to be Europes largest civil engineering project.

Crossrail will link Maidenhead and Heathrow in the west with Shenfield and Abbey wood in the East. It will include new stations at key city locations including Bond Street, Farringdon and Canary Wharf.

It will bring an additional one and a half million people to within 60 minutes of London's key business areas and is expected to carry 200m passenger a year. It will help to add at least £20 billion to the UK's economy., and generate up to 30,000 new jobs.

The project was originally announced in 1990, however it stalled for years due to a shortfall of £400 million.
The unique deal announced today will mean that Crossrail is both funded by the Government and the businesses that are set to directly benefit from the link. The Parliamentary Bill to secure the necessary powers to begin construction of the link is expected to get Royal Assent in Summer 2008.

Work is expected to begin in 2010 with the first trains expected to run in 2017.