Request ID: FOI-0009-2425 Date published: 09 May 2024
You asked
14.4.24 clarification:
I am after information about planned outages. As a commuter, I am absolutely SICK AND TIRED of this £18Bn line being out of action so often. It serves the busiest London airport, yet it doesn't work at weekends, bank holidays, late in the evening. I think as a tax payer who has paid towards this utter fiasco, I deserve an answer as to why it wasn't built to a sufficient quality standard to avoid it being repeatedly closed for scheduled works.
I trust that clarifies the nature of my request.
Why £18Bn doesn't make the Elizabeth line work
You spent £18Bn on Crossrail, but the Elizabeth Line still keeps having outages.
I want details of every closure since 1/1/23 and why £18Bn didn't deliver a railway that actually works for more than a few days without being taken out of commission.
Details required are the date of the closure, the reason for the closure, and why this wasn't addressed during to horrendously expensive construction of Crossrail.
We answered
TfL Ref: 0009-2425 Thank you for your clarified request received by us on 14 April 2024 asking for information about planned Elizabeth line outages. Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act and our information access policy. I can confirm that we hold the information you require. You specifically asked: Why £18Bn doesn't make the Elizabeth line work You spent £18Bn on Crossrail, but the Elizabeth Line still keeps having outages. I want details of every planned closure since 1/1/23 and why £18Bn didn't deliver a railway that actually works for more than a few days without being taken out of commission. Details required are the date of the closure, the reason for the closure, and why this wasn't addressed during to horrendously expensive construction of Crossrail While the Elizabeth line has been performing well overall with customer satisfaction remaining high, we have been working hard with Network Rail and our partners to improve the reliability of the service, which has resulted in improved performance since the turn of the year, achieving our highest performance stats since through-running began in November 2022. Network Rail have put a plan in place to improve infrastructure in the Thames Valley and we are supporting these plans to further enhance reliability on Elizabeth line services between Paddington to Reading and Heathrow. We have also recently carried out a significant train signalling software update with Alstom, who maintain the Elizabeth line trains, that has seen improved performance across the line in recent weeks and we are committed to working with all partners collaboratively to build on the recent improvements to the railway's overall reliability.
The Elizabeth line operates on Network Rail infrastructure, Heathrow Airport infrastructure and TfL infrastructure. In order to deliver regular scheduled maintenance, upgrades and renewals, the infrastructure owners require closures of the railway to undertake the works; these works ultimately deliver improved performance and opportunities for future customer journeys. We acknowledge that planned closures cause some inconvenience to customers, but most closures are planned well in advance and coordinated across the network, in liaison with other Train Operating Companies and transport modes, in order to cause as little disruption to passengers as possible. Please see the data attached as requested.
If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for any reason, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal as well as information on copyright and what to do if you would like to re-use any of the information we have disclosed.
Yours sincerely
Sara Thomas FOI Case Management Team General Counsel Transport for London
