Croxley Rail Link

Croxley Rail Link
The disused line at Watford West railway station.
Overview
Type	Rapid transit
System	London Underground
Status	Approved for re-opening
Locale	Hertfordshire
Termini	Croxley Watford Junction
Stations	3
Operation
Opening	January 2016 (Proposed)[1]
Operator(s)	Transport for London
Technical
Line length	3.4 mi (5.47 km)

[ v t e ] Railways of Watford and Rickmansworth

Legend West Coast Main Line Abbey Line Watford Junction West Coast Main Line Watford High Street High Street Junction Colne Junction Watford DC Line Watford Stadium Watford Vicarage Road Former Watford and Watford West Rickmansworth Railway Watford Cassiobridge Planned canal and Croxley Green and road bridge Croxley Rickmansworth (LNER / Met) Metropolitan line Rickmansworth (Church Street) KEY Network Rail LMS Croxley Rail Link MET & LNER

The Croxley Rail Link is a proposed railway engineering project in the Watford and Three Rivers districts of Hertfordshire, England. The project involves diverting the Watford branch services of the London Underground's Metropolitan line away from its current terminus at Watford tube station, to use the trackbed of the disused Watford and Rickmansworth Railway between Croxley Green and Watford High Street stations, with trains continuing to Watford Junction. This will require the construction of a new viaduct over the Grand Union Canal, River Gade and A412 road at Croxley Green, and will see the closure of Watford (Metropolitan) station to passengers.^[2]

The main exponent of the scheme is Hertfordshire County Council,^[3][4] supported by Transport for London (TfL)^[5] which owns the Watford branch. The proposed route was featured in a Transport for London network map for 2016^[6] and the Transport for London Indicative 2025 Transport Map on which Watford tube station does not appear.^[7] When the link is built, direct services between Watford Junction and Amersham would also be possible,^[3] but these are not included in the business case for the scheme.

The project was approved by the Government on 14 December 2011.^[8] Construction work is scheduled to start in June 2014 and be finished by January 2016.^[9] Final approval was given on 24 July 2013.^[10]

History

Diagram of 1927 proposals extending the Met line into Watford (never constructed)

The former British Rail Croxley Green branch prior to its closure (pictured: Watford West station 1985)

The present-day London Underground Watford station is situated close to Cassiobury Park, somewhat peripheral to Watford town centre. The Metropolitan Railway had originally intended to extend the branch into central Watford via a tunnel under Cassiobury Park to a terminus on the High Street. Watford station was constructed at a low level to allow for the construction of a cut-and-cover tunnel across the park, and in 1927 the MR purchased 44 High Street, opposite Clarendon Road, with the intention of converting it into the booking hall of Watford Central tube station. Watford Urban District Council, who had bought parts of the Cassiobury Estate from the Earl of Essex to create Cassiobury Park, objected to the proposal to drive a railway across the park. The project was cancelled and the terminus of the Watford branch remained on the southern side of the park, approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) from the town centre^[11] and 44 Watford High Street is now The Moon Under Water public house.^[12]

Another railway in the Watford area was the single-track Watford and Rickmansworth Railway (WRR), a branch of the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) which opened in 1862 between Watford Junction and Rickmansworth (Church Street). In 1912 the LNWR opened a second branch to Croxley Green and although part of the route ran close to the Metropolitan Line (about 200 metres), the lines were not linked. The LNWR line came under the ownership of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS) in 1923 and British Rail in 1948. Throughout this time, passenger numbers were low and the former WRR lines were run down; British Rail withdrew passenger services from the Rickmansworth branch in 1952 and ran a skeleton service on the Croxley Green branch until 1996, when both branches were closed.^[13]

The London Transport Executive (LTE), part of the British Transport Commission considered options for the Metropolitan Line in 1948. It considered what to do with the Watford property which had been acquired for the abandoned tunnel scheme and proposed linking the Metropolitan to the BR Croxley Green branch line.^[14] A similar proposal was put forward by London Regional Transport (LRT) around 1994; an adapted version of the tube map for internal planning purposes printed that year shows a projected route via Watford West and Watford High Street to Watford Junction.^[15] Because the line lay entirely within Hertfordshire, it was championed by the county council who lobbied for funding from LRT (later TfL) and the Department for Transport for 16 years.^[16]

Funding

In 2005 Transport for London (TfL) tentatively committed to providing up to £18m of the estimated cost of £65m, predicting that the link would be operational by 2010.^[17] Difficulties arose in securing the remaining funding from the Department for Transport and a revised project submission, under new guidelines, was prepared, with a view to obtaining Programme Entry status. A business case was submitted to the DfT in February 2008, with revised costs of £95m.^[18] This was rejected in March on the basis that no guarantee of financial backing had been received from TfL.^[19]

The project took a major step forward in July 2008 when the East of England Regional Assembly declared it a "priority" among transport policies and agreed to contribute £119.5m^[20] towards the estimated cost, now £150m.^[21] Hertfordshire County Council agreed to allocate £25.8m which it hoped to recover through ticket sales and other London Underground revenue.^[22] It was predicted that the link could be operational within seven years.^[20]

Stuart Pile, executive member for highways, transport and rural affairs, said:

"I'm delighted that the regional assembly will be pushing the Government to fund these schemes. We need to invest in our transport infrastructure if we’re going to support our economy and reduce congestion. The Department for Transport bases its funding decisions on the regional advice, so we’re optimistic that we'll get the go-ahead and that the line can open in 2017."^[23]

A revised business case was produced in autumn 2009 and the costs and scope reviewed. Following the coalition's Comprehensive Spending Review the project was placed in the pre-qualification pool and a further submission made to the Department for Transport in January 2011. In February 2011 the Department for Transport placed the project into a qualification pool of works that would be subjected to further assessments in order to bid for funding. A Best and Final Funding Bid was submitted to the Department in September 2011.^[24] On 14 December 2011, the Department for Transport agreed to fund £76.2m of the £115.9m cost,^[25] with the remainder from the local authorities (£33.7m) and third parties (£6.86m).^[9]

Route and proposed services

A diagram of the proposed rail services Map of the Croxley Rail Link. The proposed Ascot Road stationed was renamed to Cassiobridge in Aug 2013

A key part of the Croxley Rail Link project will be the construction of the "missing link", a short line of track connecting the existing Metropolitan line to the former British Rail Croxley Green branch line at their closest point. This will involve installing a new junction near Baldwins Lane, about 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) north-east of Croxley station, and building a new viaduct and bridge to carry the Metropolitan line over the A412 Watford Road dual carriageway and the Grand Union Canal^[26] to the former BR line. New double track will be laid along the disused trackbed, reinstating the line as far as Watford High Street; from this point, Underground trains will share track with London Overground trains along the Watford DC Line to the Watford Junction terminus.^[27]

Stations

Although the route will run along a re-opened stretch of track, none of the former BR stations which closed in 1996 are to be re-opened, Instead, they are to be replaced by two newly constructed stations which will be situated close to the old station sites: Croxley Green station will be replaced by Cassiobridge^[28] (formerly to be called Ascot Road). and a second new station, Watford Vicarage Road, will be built on Vicarage Road to replace both Watford West and the football specials halt, Watford Stadium.^[28][29] Both will have full Underground facilities with the exception of a staffed ticket office; ticket machines are to be available instead.^[30][31]

Watford Friends of the Earth commented on the siting of the stations:

"The Croxley Rail Link has a valuable role to play in access to the football ground and hospital. A new station on the Croxley Rail Link to serve the football ground and hospital is a better option than refurbishing the station on Tolpits Lane, which is currently the preferred choice of Watford Council's consultants."^[32]

Summary of stations on the route:

Station	Status	notes
Watford Junction	existing
Watford High Street	existing
Watford Stadium	remaining closed	Area to be served by Watford Vicarage Road
Watford Vicarage Road	new station
Watford West	remaining closed	Area to be served by Watford Vicarage Road
Cassiobridge	new station
Croxley Green	remaining closed	Area to be served by Cassiobridge
Croxley	existing

Closure of Watford tube station

Watford Met station, scheduled to close in 2016

Transport for London have stated that passenger services on the Metropolitan Line from Croxley to Watford will cease when the Croxley Rail Link opens in 2016; Watford Met station will close, although the short branch may remain in operation as a reversing siding. Following closure, the nearest station to Watford Met will be Cassiobridge, approximately 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) away. The plan to close the station has been the subject of some local opposition, and campaigners have argued for a reduced shuttle service to be operated on the branch.^[33]

The decision to end services on part of the line and to close a station requires a formal closure process involving London TravelWatch.^[2] The London TravelWatch Board has set up the Watford Station Closure Panel whose members are David Liebling, the vice chair of TravelWatch and the representative for London on the Board of Passenger Focus; Gail Engert, chair of the Transport Services Committee of TravelWatch; and David Barry, chair of the Consumer Affairs Committee of TravelWatch. The panel held a public meeting in Watford on 14 June 2012 to present arguments to TfL against the station closure.^[34][35]

Amersham link

A further proposal is to use the existing but seldom-used Metropolitan line chord which allows trains to run from Watford towards Amersham via Rickmansworth. In conjunction with the Croxley Rail Link, this route would allow the operation of direct services between Watford Junction and Amersham.thus improving local public transport in Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire.^[3][36]

The proposal was included in a Greengauge 21 report 'Capturing the Benefits of HS2 on Existing Lines'. The report proposes that High Speed Two would increase capacity on the West Coast Mainline, increasing the benefits of an Amersham Link to The Croxley Link. The benefits of which for Metropolitan Line services would be greatly increased by the substantial intensification of service that is planned for Watford Junction. This could also support a new service from Aylesbury and other London to Aylesbury Line destinations to Watford Junction."^[37]

The Amersham link featured in London Regional Transport's adapted internal planning Tube map of 1994, which first illustrated the projected route.^[15]

Naming disputes

Although Ascot Road was initially chosen by consultants on the project, many local people and councillors have felt that the name does not reflect the area and also that the name may get confused with Ascot in Berkshire. Cassiobridge has been suggested due to historical connections with the area and because of a bridge over the Grand Union Canal. There is also a dispute over stations being named after roads.^[28]

Similarly, Watford Hospital has had its name changed to Watford Vicarage Road as it is more recognisable outside of the area.^[28][29][38]

Redevelopment

The proposed route runs close to the Watford Health Campus, a major new development of Watford General Hospital that will include a hotel and retail, business and residential developments. Promoters of this development believe that the new rail link will increase the need for public transport and will provide potential custom for new services, and the Health Campus project expresses support for the project on its website.^[39]

Initial work and construction

After the appointment of Taylor Woodrow in May 2013 for design and construction of the rail link, initial on-site work began in June. This first involved four to six people carrying out ecological surveys, with some vegetation had to be cleared for access. Main construction work is expected to begin in 2014.^[40] The final approval was given on 24 July 2013 with the Transport and Works Act Order.^[10]

Gallery

• 

  Watford High Street station

• 

  Watford Stadium Halt railway station

• 

  Croxley tube station

• 

  Watford Junction station

• 

  The route at Croxley Green station

• 

  An outside view of Watford tube station

See also

• Watford tube station

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Croxley Rail Link.

• "Croxley Rail Link Public Consultation website". Croxley Rail Link. 
• "Croxley Rail Link". Transport for London. Retrieved 2008-07-27. 
• "Croxley Link". Always Touch Out. 2006-08-29. 
• "Google Maps". Google.  diagram of the proposed link
• Carto.Metro map of the Croxley Rail Link
• "Disused Stations: Croxley Green". Subterranea Britannica. 2004-11-05.  - photos of the disused line
• "London's Abandoned Stations - Croxley Green branch". Abandoned Stations. 
• "An insight into the history of the branch line and its demise as well as photographs of the derelict line today". Underground History. 
• "A Blog Containing up to date details on the progress of the Line". London Reconnections. 

v t e Metropolitan line Stations Central London section Aldgate Liverpool Street Moorgate Barbican Farringdon King's Cross St. Pancras Euston Square Great Portland Street Core section Baker Street Finchley Road Wembley Park Preston Road Northwick Park Harrow-on-the-Hill Uxbridge branch West Harrow Rayners Lane Eastcote Ruislip Manor Ruislip Ickenham Hillingdon Uxbridge Outer section & branches North Harrow Pinner Northwood Hills Northwood Moor Park Watford branch Croxley Watford Rickmansworth Chorleywood Chalfont & Latimer Chesham branch Chesham Amersham branch Amersham Click to enlarge Rolling stock Present rolling stock S8 Stock History Former lines Brill Tramway Metropolitan Railway Metropolitan line (1933-88) Aylesbury and Buckingham Railway Closed stations Brill Granborough Road Hammersmith (Grove Road) Lord's Marlborough Road Quainton Road Swiss Cottage Uxbridge Road Verney Junction Waddesdon Waddesdon Road Westcott Winslow Road Wood Lane Wood Siding Wotton Watford Central (never opened) Former stations Aylesbury Dollis Hill Great Missenden Gunnersbury Kensington (Olympia) Kew Gardens Kilburn Kingsbury Neasden Queensbury Ravenscourt Park Richmond Stamford Brook Stanmore Stoke Mandeville Turnham Green Wendover West Hampstead Willesden Green Transferred lines Aylesbury Line Bakerloo Line East London Line Hammersmith & City line Jubilee line Great Northern & City Railway Former rolling stock Metropolitan Railway electric multiple units GN&C Stock S Stock T Stock Circle Stock O/P/CP/CO/P1 Stock F Stock Main Line Stock A60 and A62 Stock Former locomotives A Class B Class C Class D Class E Class F Class G Class H Class K Class Metropolitan Railway electric locomotives Metropolitan departmental ex GWR Wotton Tramway Metro-Land Metro-land Metro-Land (TV film) Future proposals Croxley Rail link Croxley Rail Link Cassiobridge Watford Vicarage Road Watford High Street Watford Junction Other West Hampstead interchange London Underground Transport for London London Transport portal

Coordinates: 51°38′53″N 0°24′46″W / 51.6481°N 0.4128°W / 51.6481; -0.4128