Metropolitan Line extension to Watford Junction gets go-ahead after securing final funding shorfall from Transport for London
Plans to extend the Metropolitan Line to Watford Junction have finally been given the green light after securing a multi-million pound shortfall in funding from Transport for London.
Ground will be broken on the project next year when the line was originally slated to open with completion due in 2020. The £284.4m project, originally called the Croxley Rail Link, has been beset by delays and spiralling costs.
Now Mayor of London Boris Johnson has decided TfL will contribute £49m towards the costs after stepping in to run the line earlier this year, taking over from Hertfordshire council. The rest of the cash will come from local funding (£125m) and the Department of Transport (£110m).
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The extension is expected to benefit the local economy by £2bn and create more than 6,500 jobs.
The route will extend the Metropolitan Line from Croxley to Watford Junction and includes two new stations – Cassiobridge and Watford Vicarage Road – with trains running to and from London every ten minutes.
"This new part of the Underground network will support further rapid development in the area. By 2020 we will have built a 400m viaduct, two completely new stations and numerous new and reconstructed bridges along the route, transforming transport links in Watford," said London Underground managing director Nick Brown.
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"With the funding package complete we’re now turning all our attention to appointing contractors, finalising designs and beginning construction in 2016.”
