London’s Elizabeth line, a brand new railway line for London and the South East has officially opened to the public today. The £19 billion project will reduce journey times, create additional transport capacity, improve accessibility and is expected to provide a huge economic boost to the capital city and beyond.

Alstom, a global leader in smart and sustainable mobility, has supplied trains, technology and infrastructure for this new line and will also maintain the trains.

Nick Crossfield, Alstom managing director, UK & Ireland, said: “The Elizabeth line is set to transform London and become one of the world’s leading urban transport operations. I am immensely proud of the leading role Alstom has played in the Crossrail project, and will continue to do so delivering reliable, high-quality trains for Londoners.”

The new railway which cuts through central London uses Alstom’s Class 345 Aventra fleet between London Paddington and Abbey Wood station. The ‘state of the art’ trains, already in service between Paddington, Heathrow Airport and Reading on the west, and also run between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield on the east. The seventy seven- and nine-car trains have been designed and built at Alstom’s Derby factory and are maintained by Alstom at Old Oak Common depot in West London as part of a 32-year rolling stock and services provision contract.



The Alstom-led ATC joint venture, formed with partners TSO UK and Costain, has designed, constructed, tested and commissioned critical infrastructure works for the new 55km line.

ATC has delivered the traction power supply for the trains, incorporating Alstom’s in-house feeding systems, non-traction power supplies for the stations, shafts and portals, tunnel ventilation systems and other electrical and mechanical systems, laid the track (including 5500 HAS sleepers), and built a new maintenance depot at Plumstead.

ATC has been the principal contractor for the entire railway construction, managing safety, logistics, testing and commissioning between more than twenty interfacing contractors.

Andy Byford, London’s transport commissioner, said: “Alstom UK has been a key delivery partner in the Elizabeth line and played a major part making it possible to open this transformational railway today. Providing trains, technology, infrastructure and maintenance, they will help ensure Londoners and visitors benefit from reliable and more accessible journeys across the capital.”

Building on Alstom’s expertise in the UK rail sector over the last 20 years, the Aventra solution has been developed to meet both urban and mainline rail requirements. Thanks to its modular vehicle design, the Aventra trains offer high-configuration flexibility to maximise capacity and accommodate different operational needs such as high-capacity metro, commuter, regional and intercity services.

Train customisations include various car lengths with one to three doors per car side, three different front ends and different seating arrangements and comfort levels. The Aventra trains feature digital capabilities such as full colour displays for modern passenger information delivery, fast 4G WiFi and smartphone integration, improving passenger comfort and convenience. More than 2,600 Aventra cars have been sold in the UK since 2014.