TfL Refines Northern Line Route Takeover Business Case, Seeks 4 Trains
Transport for London is refining its full business case for taking control of the northern line route between Moorgate and Herford North and Welwyn Garden City. The proposal is tied to TfL’s aim to serve Crews Hill, where a new town for 21,000 people is being built.
One £239m option would lift off-peak services from two per hour to four per hour. A £310m option would raise peak services to up to eight per hour and off-peak services to up to six per hour, giving the route a much denser timetable than it runs now.
Crews Hill and TfL
TfL submitted its outline business case to the Department for Transport last December. The authority has argued that, because Govia Thameslink Railway is now under public ownership, the government should hand over control of the route to TfL.
Sadiq Khan said handing TfL control of the services was one of his top asks of the government. “I'm lobbying the government for the devolution of the Great Northern line, which will really help in Crews Hill and Enfield,” he said to MyLondon last December.
The plan would also affect stations already in TfL’s network. Highbury and Islington, Moorgate and Old Street would get new London Overground platforms under the proposal.
Department for Transport review
An FOI officer said TfL is currently addressing a number of operational comments received from the Department for Transport. TfL is now refining its full business case for assessment, which keeps the handover process moving without a final decision.
Once TfL submits the full business case, the Secretary of State for Transport will review it and has powers to approve or deny the handover. The Department for Transport said discussions are ongoing with TfL about the draft business case, and that timelines for the project are yet to be finalised.
Elly Baker’s letter
Greater London Authority Transport Committee chair Elly Baker wrote to the Transport Secretary last December to back the proposal across party lines. “The committee believes now is the time for further devolution of rail in London,” she wrote.
She added that “National Rail lines play an important role in London's transport mix, but these services are currently under-performing and, as a result, are under-delivering for Londoners.”
For passengers on the route, the practical question now is whether TfL’s business case reaches the secretary of state in a form strong enough to secure approval. If it does, the next stage could determine whether off-peak service rises from two trains an hour to four, or whether the larger £310m option is the one that advances.
