crossrail journey time reading to canary wharf

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How long will the new Elizabeth Line take to travel across London? Projected journey times

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Getting around London on the underground can be a lengthy process with delays, tube strikes , baffling routes and temporary line closures.

Thankfully, the Elizabeth Line has finally partially opened , albeit several years late, with the new Crossrail system promising to cut down commute times.

Upon completion of the £18.8 billion project, the Travel for London (TfL) service will link 41 stations over 100 kilometres from Reading and Heathrow in the west, through central London, to Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east.

And now, commuters and those heading on their summer holidays may be delighted to learn that the Heathrow Terminal 4 station has opened.

So, how long will the journeys take on the Elizabeth Line , both within the city and across the rest of the line?

How long will the Elizabeth Line take to travel from central London to Heathrow Terminal 4?

According to the Crossrail website , Elizabeth Line services from Paddington, in central London, to Heathrow Airport will ‘run every 30 minutes’, with journeys taking roughly 35 minutes each way.

Currently, the route from Paddington to Heathrow Terminal 4 comprises several stops:

• Acton Main Line
• Ealing Broadway
• West Ealing
• Hayes & Harlington
• Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3
• Heathrow Terminal 4

From Monday to Friday, the connection from central London to Heathrow terminals from 4.53am for Terminals 2, 3 and 4. The last Elizabeth Line tube to Heathrow terminals will depart from Paddington at 11.17pm.

On Saturdays, you can head from Paddington to Heathrow from 4.45am, with the last departure leaving Paddington at 11.18pm.

How long will the new Crossrail take to travel across London?

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The Elizabeth Line promises to give 1.5 million more people access to central London within 45 minutes, as well as reducing journey times across the capital.

To reach this goal, the project has required 42 kilometres of new tunnels, 10 new stations, over 50 kilometres of new track.

Here is a breakdown of the sections of the line, projected journey times, as well as when they are expected to begin operating.

Central section: May 2022

Trains will start at Paddington in the West and go through to Abbey Wood and will pass through such stations as Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf.

Example journey times:

• Bond Street to Liverpool Street: Seven minutes
• Woolwich to Farringdon: 14 minutes
• Paddington to Canary Wharf: 17 minutes

New Tube map just dropped 👇 pic.twitter.com/oJdFBzCevd — Transport for London 🏳️‍🌈 (@TfL) May 19, 2022

East section: Autumn 2022

This section will run from Liverpool Street station to Shenfield   in Essex, passing through east London areas such as Stratford and Romford.

• Stratford to Bond Street: 15 minutes
• Romford to Liverpool Street: 27 minutes

Eventually, passengers will be able to travel from Reading and Heathrow through central London to Shenfield or Abbey Wood without needing to change trains.

West section: Autumn 2022

This route will begin at Paddington   mainline station and will split after Hayes & Harlington.

One branch will carry on to Maidenhead and Reading and the other to Heathrow   airport terminals.

• Tottenham Court Road to Ealing Broadway: 13 minutes
• Paddington to Slough: 26 minutes

It should be noted that these times are estimations at this point, with the final version of the timetable is expected to be in place by May 2023.

MORE : These are the stations on the Elizabeth Line you can’t use your Oyster card

MORE : Does the Elizabeth Line run on Saturday and Sunday?

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Elizabeth Line journey times explained: Crossrail route map and the full list of new TfL stations

The new crossrail line opens on tuesday, 24 may and will cover 41 stations including reading, heathrow and slough.

Transport for London has confirmed that the Elizabeth line will open on 24 May, 2022 following years of delays. The new Tube and Crossrail will start service – subject to safety checks – just in time for the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations .

The Elizabeth line will run through the centre of London, spreading out to four peripheral London locations – Reading, Heathrow, Shenfield in Essex and Abbey Wood, south-east London.

Described by TfL as “one of the most complex digital railways in the world,” the new line combines pioneering technology and design to help serve central London and commuter towns.

Elizabeth line journey times

Crossrail service will start with 12 trains an hour (one train every 5 minutes) running between Paddington and Abbey Wood from 6.30am to 11pm, Monday to Saturday.

The line will not run on Sundays, however this will change in the autumn. A special service will operate on Sunday 5 June, 2022 between 8am and 10pm to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee .

The full line should open by autumn 2022.

More from News

Elizabeth line map

TfL has released an official map showing the  route of the new Elizabeth line . For a full  high-resolution map click here.

Elizabeth line timetable

• The Elizabeth line will cut journey times from Abbey Wood, south-east London, to Paddington by almost half to 29 minutes.
• Journeys between Liverpool Street and Woolwich will also be halved to 15 minutes.
• Trips between Farringdon and Canary Wharf will take 10 minutes, instead of 24.

Other example journey times:

• Bond Street to Liverpool Street: Seven minutes
• Woolwich to Farringdon: 14 minutes
• Paddington to Canary Wharf: 17 minutes

East section journey times (autumn 2022)

• Stratford to Bond Street: 15 minutes
• Romford to Liverpool Street: 27 minutes

West section journey times (autumn 2022)

• Tottenham Court Road to Ealing Broadway: 13 minutes
• Paddington to Slough: 26 minutes

Full list of Crossrail stations

The new Crossrail line will cover 41 stations, not in order:

• West Drayton
• Hayes & Harlington
• West Ealing
• Ealing Broadway
• Acton Main Line
• Bond Street
• Tottenham Court Road
• Liverpool Street
• Whitechapel
• Forest Gate
• Seven Kings
• Chadwell Heath
• Harold Wood
• Canary Wharf
• Custom House
• Heathrow Airport Terminals 2 & 3
• Heathrow Airport Terminal 4
• Heathrow Airport Terminal 5

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Crossrail: New Elizabeth line journey time calculator on Citymapper shows how quick trips will be

After much anticipation, Londoners can now plan their trips according to the incoming Elizabeth line

• 19:34, 29 APR 2022
• Updated 11:46, 4 MAY 2022

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Just four years and £19 billion later, the brand-new Elizabeth line is set to open in a matter of weeks. The huge trans-London trainline will make journeys across the capital from until-now badly connected areas much quicker and easier. Transport for London's (TfL) initial Crossrail project will also decongest other lines, meaning other London Underground lines will be less cramped and, if all goes well, less delayed.

TfL has announced today (May 4) that the first stage of the new line will open on May 24 . Phase 1 covers the Paddington to Abbey Wood section of the line, which is set to run every five minutes. Phase 2 - covering Reading and Heathrow Airport to Paddington - will open later in the autumn.

In advance of the opening, mapping service Citymapper has created a journey time calculator for the Elizabeth line to show just how quick trips across the capital will now be.

Here is a breakdown of journey times between each station once the first phase of the Elizabeth line opens.

READ MORE: Forget more London Underground stations - what South London really needs is Thameslink 2 linking Croydon, Lewisham, Canary Wharf and Stratford

Elizabeth line journey times from Abbey Wood

Current: 7 minutes

Elizabeth line: 6 minutes

Custom House

Current: 41 minutes

Elizabeth line: 8 minutes

Canary Wharf

Current: 35 minutes

Elizabeth line: 11 minutes

Whitechapel

Current: 52 minutes

Elizabeth line: 15 minutes

Liverpool Street

Current: 43 minutes

Elizabeth line: 18 minutes

Elizabeth line: 20 minutes

Tottenham Court Road

Current: 55 minutes

Elizabeth line: 23 minutes

Bond Street

Current: 48 minutes

Elizabeth line: 26 minutes

Current: 58 minutes

Elizabeth line: 29 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Woolwich

Current: 28 minutes

Elizabeth line: 2 minutes

Current: 23 minutes

Elizabeth line: 5 minutes

Current: 32 minutes

Elizabeth line: 9 minutes

Elizabeth line: 12 minutes

Elizabeth line: 14 minutes

Current: 40 minutes

Current: 22 minutes

Elizabeth line: 22 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Custom House

Elizabeth line: 3 minutes

Current: 26 minutes

Elizabeth line: 7 minutes

Current: 34 minutes

Elizabeth line: 10 minutes

Current: 39 minutes

Current: 38 minutes

Current: 33 minutes

Current: 47 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Canary Wharf

Current: 17 minutes

Elizabeth line: 4 minutes

Current: 30 minutes

Current: 27 minutes

Elizabeth line: 17 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Whitechapel

Current: 10 minutes

Current: 12 minutes

Current: 31 minutes

Elizabeth line: 13 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Liverpool Street

Current: 15 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Farringdon

Current: 18 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Tottenham Court Road

Current: 16 minutes

Elizabeth line journey times from Bond Street

Elizabeth line journey times from paddington.

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Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading Trains From £20.20

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Cheap Train Tickets from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading

For a train from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading, advance tickets can be as low as £20.20, while fares on average are £29.26. To secure the cheapest train ticket, it is advisable to book in advance and avoid peak times. For more affordable options, please refer to our train ticket calendar .

Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading Live Train Timetable

Check out trains from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading today (9 May 2024) using our timetable below, including train times, live train status , departure/arrival stations, duration, train operators, and other journey details. You can view the full day or a different day train timetable here.

Canary Wharf (Elizabeth line) to Reading Train Journey Information

Experience seamless journey planning from Canary Wharf (Elizabeth line) to Reading. Explore the earliest and latest train times, departure and arrival stations, distance, journey time, and pricing options to optimise your trip.

Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading Train Travel Guide

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Plan Your Train Journey

The train from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading takes approximately 56m. The first train departs at 00:04 and the last train leaves at 23:54. 166 trains run daily from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading. Use our Train Journey Planner and Timetable for more details.

Book Cheap Train Tickets

You can travel from Canary Wharf Crossrail to Reading with Split Ticket and Advance tickets . The average fare is about £29.26, with the cheapest fare at £20.20. Besides, you can book cheap tickets on off-peak time, which usually begin at 09:30. (Intercity Off-Peak times: Monday to Friday from 09:30 to 16:00, and after 19:00). Accurate ticket prices vary depending on the time of day, route, and class selected.

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Crossrail: How quick will the Elizabeth line be? Journey times to all central stations

You will be able to shoot from Paddington to Bond street in three minutes

• 12:47, 19 MAY 2022
• Updated 09:30, 24 MAY 2022

The central section of the Elizabeth line is opening on May 24, when the first phase of delivery of the delayed Crossrail project takes place. The service will run through its own tunnels under London, between Paddington and Abbey Wood, and stop at nine of ten brand new stations - Bond Street will open later in 2022.

The new line is about to slash journey times to and from these stations in the capital, cutting the time to travel from Abbey Wood to Paddington by almost half to 29 minutes. Service will start with 12 trains per hour end to end - so a train every five minutes between Paddington and Whitechapel - between 6:30 and 11pm, Monday to Saturday. A special service will operate on Sunday June 5 between 8am and 10pm for the Platinum Jubilee weekend.

The Elizabeth line will initially operate as three separate railways. Those travelling from Reading and Heathrow will need to change trains at Paddington and walk to the Elizabeth line station there. Similarly, Passengers from the Shenfield branch in the east will need to change at Liverpool Street Station. When the final stage is complete, set to be on May 2023, a single service will seamlessly connect all stations in the line.

READ MORE: Elizabeth Line fare costs confirmed by TfL

You can now use the TfL Journey Planner to plan Elizabeth line journeys for the initial opening stage if you set the date of travel beyond the 24 May. Current journey times between Reading/Heathrow and Paddington and Shenfield and Liverpool Street remain the same.

Timings for the next stage from autumn will be made clearer closer to the time. However, journeys that will not use the new central tunnels will be roughly the same - for example, Paddington to Slough will still take around 33 mins, as does currently with TfL Rail services.

What impact will the Elizabeth Line have on Berkshire? You can have your say in our new readers' poll

Elizabeth line journey times

These are the platform to platform times for the central section of the Elizabeth line in London, during the peak periods only.

Abbey Wood to

• Woolwich - 3 mins
• Custom House - 7 mins
• Canary Wharf - 11 min
• Whitechapel - 15 mins
• Liverpool Street - 18 mins
• Farringdon - 21 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 24 mins
• Bond Street - 26 mins
• Paddington - 29 mins

Woolwich to

• Custom House - 4 mins
• Canary Wharf - 8 mins
• Whitechapel - 12 mins
• Liverpool Street - 15 mins
• Farringdon - 18 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 21 mins
• Bond Street - 23 mins
• Paddington - 26 mins

Custom House to

• Canary Wharf - 4 mins
• Whitechapel - 8 mins
• Liverpool Street - 11 mins
• Farringdon - 14 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 17 mins
• Bond Street - 19 mins
• Paddington - 22 mins

Canary Wharf to

• Whitechapel - 4 mins
• Liverpool Street - 7 mins
• Farringdon - 10 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 13 mins
• Bond Street - 15 mins
• Paddington - 18 mins

Whitechapel to

• Liverpool Street - 3 mins
• Farringdon - 6 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 9 mins
• Bond Street - 11 mins
• Paddington - 14 mins

Liverpool Street to

• Farringdon - 3 mins
• Tottenham Court Road - 6 mins
• Bond Street - 8 mins
• Paddington - 11 mins

Farringdon to

• Tottenham Court Road - 3 mins
• Bond Street - 5 mins
• Paddington - 8 mins

Tottenham Court Road to

• Bond Street - 2 mins
• Paddington - 5 mins

Bond Street to

• Paddington - 3 mins

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Homes & Property | Where to live

Crossrail guide to Canary Wharf: average house prices, new homes and Elizabeth line journey times from central London

Canary Wharf has been a long slow burn ever since the late 1980s when Margaret Thatcher decided to transform acres of derelict dockland in east London into London’s second financial centre.

Those early days were full of mishaps and disappointments — the cost of the Docklands Light Railway spiralled, and critics pointed out that once its offices cleared out the area became a ghost town.

But since 2012 things have changed, radically. No longer simply a place for bankers to earn a crust, Canary Wharf has become a modern destination in its own right.

You can relax in the Crossrail Roof Garden or Jubilee Park, shop at Crossrail Place or a series of underground malls, admire the boats at South Dock, learn to sail at the Docklands Sailing and Watersports Centre at Millwall Outer Dock, eat at the kind of restaurants where an expense account is a help — notably Roka (Canada Square), Ippudo London (Crossrail Place) or Hawksmoor (Water Street) — or stroll over to West India Quay where Grade I listed waterfront warehouses have been redeveloped with bars and restaurants.

The Canary Wharf Group puts on scores of cultural events each year, like the Winter Lights Festival and public art displays.

“When I tell people I live in Canary Wharf the majority of people say: “Oh it’s so boring, there is no character”,” said Kevin Tang, 51, who has lived in the area since 2000 with his husband Geffrye Parsons, 56.

Crossrail journey times

Canary Wharf to:

Tottenham Court Road: 13 minutes

Paddington: 18 minutes

Heathrow: From 54 minutes

Timings include ten minutes for interchange at Liverpool Street, eight minutes for interchange at Paddington, in force until 2023

“I think people should come and look at it now. It has actually got lots of character, because of the architecture. You feel very metropolitan when you live here, it is what modern London is all about. And it is heaving at the weekends with people coming to eat and drink and shop.”

The resident population of Canary Wharf has spiralled since the start of the 2000s as new towers have flown up. In 2011 there were 12,500 people living in the Canary Wharf ward, according to Tower Hamlets Council. By 2020 it had jumped to 19,000 and this is projected to leap to around 40,000 once all the new homes in the area are completed.

New landmarks on the skyline include Herzog & De Meuron’s One Park Drive, a 58 storey giant; prices currently start at £840,000 for a one bedroom flat.

There has also been heavy investment in flats built to rent. The largest to date is the Newfoundland tower, which was completed last summer. Its 636 flats cost from £2,383pcm for a one bedroom flat, and £3,335 for a two bedroom flat.

Average house prices since work on Crossrail started

2012: £371,700

2022: £603,000,

Growth: 62 per cent

Source: Hamptons

Beyond the official Canary Wharf estate new towers are being built overlooking South Dock, technically in the Isle of Dogs The 53 storey Amory Tower (formerly known as The Madison) and the 75 storey Landmark Pinnacle — where studio flats start at £559,000 — both completed last year.

Kevin, a property developer, and Geffrye, who recently took early retirement from his career in finance, reserved a flat in One Park Drive back in 2018 — the one-bedroom property, with phenomenal view from one of the highest floors, cost just over £1 million.

In the interim they rented a flat at 10, George Street, a purpose-built rental block, in 2020 before moving to their home at the start of this year.

They chose Canary Wharf partly because they were excited by the prospect of owning a home in Herzog & De Meuron’s first UK residential project. They travel frequently so living in a safe, lock up and leave home was another pull, along with the direct links to Heathrow that come with Crossrail’s long-awaited opening .

Their longer term plan is to move to Canada, and they plan to use the flat as a pied-à-terre, with the option of renting it out while they are not in the UK.

James Hyman, head of residential at Cluttons estate agents, estimates that around 70 per cent of Canary Wharf’s flats are bought by investors able to let a two-bedroom flat for around £2,200 per week.

Would-be owner occupiers can get a bit more for their money by opting for a resale flat rather than something brand new — around £750,000 would buy a two-bedroom apartment.

Hyman thinks the biggest challenge Canary Wharf’s market has faced over the past couple of years has not been the pandemic and absence of overseas buyers and local office workers.

It has been the building safety crisis and the subsequent demands for buildings to pass fire safety checks. “So many of those blocks still don’t have the right documentation to satisfy a lender and that has slightly suppressed the market,” said Hyman.

As a result, prices have inched up by just three per cent in the past two years.

Hyman agrees with Kevin that the appeal of Canary Wharf is its uniqueness. “It is a very sophisticated part of London if you want modern, purpose built living,” he says.

“And Canary Wharf has changed massively over the past 10 years. It is buzzy at the weekend. The retail is West End standard, there are restaurants and bars. A lot of people who live in Canary Wharf don’t work there. Historically you only lived there if you also worked there.”

The Canary Wharf Group has started work on the five million sq ft Wood Wharf development, which will include a hub for tech companies plus more than 4,000 new homes to rent or buy. The wharf will also include lots of new restaurants like street food sensation Mercato Metropolitano.

And at North Quay, there are plans to create a life sciences hub, several apartment buildings, a casino, nightclub, and skatepark.

To counteract all this steel, grass, and concrete, it was announced earlier this year that Canary Wharf chiefs are working with the Eden Project on plans to create a “green spine” through the docklands, featuring parks and gardens, boardwalks, bridges, and floating pontoons through the centre of the neighbourhood.

‘Recession-proof’ homes: the London areas to buy in now amid ongoing economic uncertainty

Comment: must ‘sports-led regeneration’ lead to soaring house prices?

Crossrail guide to Hanwell: average house prices, new homes and Elizabeth line journey times from central London

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Crossrail’s predicted Elizabeth line journey times

Xcrossrail’s predicted elizabeth line journey times.

When it opens, the Elizabeth line will not just substantially increase capacity on the tube network in Central London, for many people, it will make journeys a lot faster. In some cases, considerably faster, especially in southeast London.

We now have the expected times for journeys along the line between Abbey Wood and Paddington, which will be the first part of the core tunnels to open in just a few weeks’ time, and they confirm that for a lot of people, journey times across London is about to shrink.

It’s not just people who ride on the Lizzie line who will benefit though. For example, people arriving at Waterloo on the mainline trains heading to Canary Wharf on the Jubilee line can often have to wait for a couple of trains to pass before they are able to edge to the front of the crowd and squeeze onto a train. However, when Bond Street opens later this year, it’s been previously suggested that as much as a quarter of the Jubilee line passengers coming from North London will switch to the Elizabeth line, meaning less crowded trains at Waterloo, and so less time waiting to catch a Jubilee line train.

But, back to the Elizabeth line for those lucky enough to be riding on those trains in a few weeks’ time…

The times provided for the Elizabeth line are platform to platform, so I’ve adjusted the current TfL time calculations accordingly. Note that the current journey times are slightly variable from the numbers given because of how often people need to change trains or buses along the route – I’ve taken a reasonable average, but naturally, your personal trip may be slightly different.

At the moment, this is just for the Abbey Wood to Paddington services, as the timetable for the later phases of opening the line will be released closer to the time.

And spot the one trip where the Lizzie line will not save you any time on your journey.

If you’re heading east to west…

From Abbey Wood

*Abbey Wood to Woolwich Arsenal station

From Woolwich

From custom house, from canary wharf, from whitechapel, from liverpool street, from farringdon, from tottenham court road, from bond street.

If you’re heading west to east

From Paddington

*from Woolwich Arsenal station

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32 comments

Bond Street to Canary Wharf by the Liz has four intermediate stops, whereas the Jubbly has seven intermediate stops, and the distances are about 10km either way, so it’s hard to believe that the Liz would take as long as the Jubbly, unless the door mechanisms are significantly slower on the Liz!

That would depend on which Canary Wharf Station was used for the timing. 😉

It is about prices. Will the Paddington to Reading part be part of tfl? And the prices will drop accordingly? May I shall be using the over 60 card?

Those current journey times from Woolwich seem highly unlikely to me; 40 mins to Paddington? The best I can get from CityMapper is 52 mins via the DLR and Canning Town. The direct train between Woolwich Arsenal and Charing Cross alone takes 35 mins.

Try using a more accurate travel app 😉

DLR to Canning Town – 13 min

Jubilee line to Baker Street – 21 min

Baker Street to Paddington – 4 min

Is the “more accurate” app the one that gives you a realistic start platform to end platform time, or the one that gives you the lowest number? (Asking for a friend waiting to get on the down escalator at Canning Town)

It’s the one that doesn’t tell you to take a much slower route that the much quicker ones that are available.

And yes, I did state in the article that I averaged out the numbers, so no I didn’t go for the lowest number, knowing that someone, probably called Paul, would feel compelled to go “ah-ha, I’ve found a mistake!”, and yes, I did include the average interchange times in the journeys.

“The times provided for the Elizabeth line are platform to platform, so I’ve adjusted the current TfL time calculations accordingly.”

So the times above are from gate to gate?

What does the sentence you quoted say?

Looks at the 2018 figures.. https://ukfree.tv/styles/images/2018/Elizabeth-timings.png

These usefully show the travel AND stop (dwell) times.

It interesting that the to-buffers sections have an extra minute (because by law the trains have to come to a full stop before approaching the buffers)

Tottenham Court Road to Paddington currently states 11min! If that was the case I wouldn’t need Elizabeth Line as that’s unbelievable!

Start platform to end platform it’s not unreasonable IMO, you’re talking about 2 mins to Oxford Circus and 8 mins to Paddington with a minute to change.

Could you do to and from Stratford?

There are no direct trains from Stratford beyond L.St until Autumn 2022. You must change at L.St to the low level station until then.

So it opens ‘in a few weeks’. What’s the opening date please?

The opening date has been the same since last year – “As soon as possible in the first half of 2022”

So basically, saying ‘a few weeks’ is completely untrue. We are still in April, if you haven’t noticed. Please correct your copy

The end of June (the latest possible date) is just a few weeks away. What I wrote is not untrue.

Will the fares be the same as the tube in each Zone that Elizabeth line between Paddington and Abbey Wood will run through?

What’s the situation like at Paddington and changing from the terminating crossrail service platforms up to the main station to catch the rail services to LHR?

All step free for people with luggage etc or will it be an awful trek?

It’s a brand new station – you can’t build brand new things without making them fully accessible.

I can’t wait for this! It will be such a benefit. Any idea when the direct line will be from west Drayton to Farringdon and how long it will take? I read that it was 29 minutes which is a massive improvement to my current commute and hassle of at least two trains!! More updates on this please! It’s been long awaited! Thanks!

What is the journey time between Canary Wharf DLR or Canary Wharf Jubilee to the new Elizabeth line station?

Currently I go from Canning Town to Stratford then to Liverpool street, would this make it quicker for me to go Canning Town to Canary Wharf then Liverpool Street? My gut says no but maybe i’m overestimating the change time

Go to Custom House and swap to the Elizabeth line there.

Apart from doing central line type journeys crossrail will not change much. People doing central line type journeys will suddenly find themselves in a gigantic empty space railway, on trains, in stations, and endless walking to get out of the system.

The central line eyeball to eyeball experience may have worn a bit thin so this will be lovely for them. But what about everybody else, not having a whole line replicated for them.

Well I can give everybody else the news they have all been waiting for. What has just been done for central line travellers will be done for them NEVER. Just as well really, because the cost of doing it for cental liners has bankrupted us. (“You lucky people”)

So people on the Bakerloo line won’t benefit from people no longer crushing onto trains at Paddington?

So people squashed on the Jubilee line won’t benefit from the Lizzie line soaking up loads of passengers heading to/from Canary Wharf? Likewise the DLR and London Overground at Shadwell?

So people who use the Met/Circle/H&S lines along the Paddington to Liverpool Street line won’t benefit?

So people living out on the mainline branches don’t benefit from better longer more frequent trains?

So people living in Woolwich who use the DLR won’t benefit from getting a seat for the first time in years?

So people in Abbey Wood wont benefit from vastly quicker journeys into central London?

I am really sorry that there are people in the world as stupid as Ramon Prasad.

Literally 3 out of the 10 stops on the central section of the Elizabeth line are also on the Central line. The Elizabeth line with relieve pressure in the central tunnels on practically every other Underground line (perhaps with exceptions of Piccadilly and Victoria) as well as on National Rail services (Southeastern, Thameslink and C2C)

And what even does “bankrupted us” mean? It “cost” £18billion or so. At least 30% of that will go straight back into the Treasury in taxes on profits and income. The rest will be divided between the workers (you know those people who have to pay their bills), and of course fat profits for the builders, but that’s just par for the course. The construction cost is fully financed by sustainable government borrowing backed by the taxes on the beneficiaries and fare income.

If schemes that would directly benefit those in other parts of the South-East, such as Crossrail 2 or 3 (BML2) are scrapped despite being affordable and sensible, that is really not the fault of the “central line travellers”

Hello Ian, I come in on the c2c from Upminster and am building an idea of getting from here to Canary wharf via a quick change at Limehouse, which is just two stops from Canary wharf on the DLR towards Lewisham, then a shortish walk to the Elizabeth line. But I have also heard that Bond street is not to open yet on the Elizabeth line, and also that parts of the extension onwards to Heathrow are at a premium? Information is still vague… Thanks. Kevan

It has been widely reported on here and elsewhere that Bond Street will open later this year.

There are no plans to charge a premium for journeys to Heathrow.

Hello Ian, Thanks. From Limehouse, accessible options are: Two stations to Canary wharf, and walk through the shops to the Elizabeth line (or Jubilee). Ok if you can walk. 15 minutes on the DLR towards Beckton, to Custom House Excel, from Limehouse. No steps, lifts etc. Brilliant route in a wheelchair, or if yiu struggle to walk. Shadwell, one stop from Limehouse, on the overground, having a lift down towards platforms, and then steps to the actual platform. Totally inaccessible. It all depends how accessibly friendly you need to be. Kevan

Hi, I’m looking to travel between Brentwood and Custom House, It would be great to eventually be able to do this without many changes which I currently have on the jubilee and DLR, will I eventially be able to take the Elizabeth line to Farringdon and do a quick hop over platforms to then continue on the Elizabeth line in the direction to Custom House? Mobility issues mean the easier journey for me is better even if it takes a little longer compared to switching and walking much

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'Confusing' Crossrail tickets mean passengers can save £10 by getting off and on again

Using Transport for London's ticketing system will cost more

Commuters using the new Elizabeth Line in London could make a saving by getting off and on again at certain stations. 

The “confusing” ticketing system – which switches between Transport for London and GWR fares – means completing a journey in one go will cost substantially more. 

A peak time journey from Reading to Canary Wharf would cost £29.20 if you tapped in and out using a contactless payment or oyster card, according to Transport for London.

However, a journey from Reading to Slough only costs £5.90 while Slough to Canary Wharf cost £12.50 also at peak times. This means a passenger who boarded at Reading would save £10.80 by getting off the train Slough, tapping out and in the gates and then boarding the next train to Canary Wharf.

Similarly, breaking a trip between Reading to Liverpool Street at West Ealing would save a commuter £7.20.

Norman Baker from Campaign for Better Transport, a campaign group, said: "This is yet another example of how complicated, confusing and increasingly out of date the ticketing system is."

Mr Baker, a former transport minister, added that "root and branch reform" was needed of the whole rail fares system to tackle such anomalies and "ensure passengers were getting value for money".

The Elizabeth Line, which opens to passengers today, is more than three years late and almost £4bn over budget. The line will run more than 62 miles through central London from Shenfield and Abbey Wood in the east to Reading and Heathrow Airport in the west.

Services will be limited to six days a week and the new Bond Street station will remain closed. Around 300 people queued outside Paddington Station this morning ahead of the service's opening at 6.30am.

A TfL spokesman said: "Fares between Reading and Slough are set by GWR and remain the same as those which operated under TfL Rail. As with all rail journeys across the UK, there will be occasions where customers may benefit from split-ticketing or pay as you go fares through exiting and re-entering stations with their contactless card.

"Our pay as you go system calculates the most appropriate fare for your journey, including whether any daily or weekly cap would apply. Pay as you go with contactless can be used across the whole of the new Elizabeth Line.”

Do you have any similar train ticket saving hacks? Tell us in the comments section below

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