Why I Will Never Not Love London’s Elizabeth Line
London’s crown-jewel railway has had its glitches, but on any broad assessment it has to be considered a resounding success.
The Elizabeth Line is a thing of beauty and a joy to travel on, despite some bad online reviews.
Photographer: David Levenson/BloombergIt’s an engineering marvel that has transformed the experience of traveling in London, created jobs, spurred urban regeneration, supported office rents, encouraged housebuilding and helped the climate by getting more people to leave their cars at home. But what has it done for us lately?
The Elizabeth Line celebrated the milestone of transporting 500 million passenger journeys last month. The east-west project — known initially as Crossrail before being renamed after the late monarch — has become Britain’s most-used railway since starting services in May 2022, accounting for 13% of all trips taken nationally. The “Lizzie Line,” as it’s known colloquially, has the highest satisfaction ratings of all public-transport modes in the capital, outscoring the London Underground and buses (which, unlike in most of the UK, are pretty good in the capital). Passenger growth continues to track above post-pandemic expectations and revenue is on budget. For all that, not everyone is happy.