TfL Rail facts for kids

Quick facts for kids TfL Rail
Unit 345007 at Shenfield 7th July 2017 06.jpg
Info
Owner	Transport for London
Locale	Greater London Berkshire Buckinghamshire Essex
Transit type	Commuter rail / rapid transit
Number of lines	2
Number of stations	32 (22 managed)
Operation
Began operation	31 May 2015; 10 years ago (2015-05-31)
Ended operation	23 May 2022; 3 years ago (2022-05-23) (rebranded as Elizabeth line)
Operator(s)	MTR Corporation
Reporting marks	XR
Technical
System length	36 miles 54 chains (59.0 km)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV 50 Hz AC

TfL Rail was a train service that ran in and around London, England. It operated commuter trains on two separate railway lines. These lines were later connected by the Crossrail project. TfL Rail started in 2015 and stopped running in May 2022. When the central part of Crossrail opened, TfL Rail was renamed the Elizabeth line.

The service began on May 31, 2015. It took over the "metro" train service between London Liverpool Street in central London and Shenfield in Essex. This part of the line had 14 stations. TfL Rail also started running some services from Paddington to Heathrow Airport and Reading. The trains were operated by MTR Corporation for Transport for London (TfL). Between May 2016 and May 2017, over 47 million people used the Shenfield branch of TfL Rail.

History of TfL Rail

In June 2013, TfL looked for companies to run the new Crossrail service. Four companies were chosen to bid for the contract. In July 2014, a company from Hong Kong, MTR, won the contract. They were given an eight-year contract, with a chance to extend it for two more years.

MTR Corporation (Crossrail) took over the train service between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield. This happened on May 31, 2015. The older Class 315 trains were repainted with TfL Rail colours. All 14 stations on the line had new signs and were staffed all day. In June 2017, newer Class 345 trains started running on this line.

In May 2018, TfL Rail also took over the Heathrow Connect service. This ran between London Paddington and Heathrow Airport. They also took over some GWR services. These ran between London Paddington and Hayes & Harlington. In December 2019, TfL Rail took over more Great Western Railway services. These were the stopping trains between London Paddington and Reading. In November 2019, Class 345 trains began running on the Paddington to Reading line. This helped drivers get used to the new trains. In July 2020, Class 345 trains also started running between London Paddington and Heathrow.

The two separate TfL Rail lines became part of the Elizabeth line. This happened when the central section of Crossrail opened on May 24, 2022. The existing lines then connected to the new central tunnels.

TfL Rail Routes

TfL Rail had two main routes. The eastern route ran for about 20 miles (32 km) on the Great Eastern Main Line. This was between London Liverpool Street and Shenfield. The western routes ran on parts of the Great Western Main Line and the Heathrow tunnel. This was between London Paddington and Heathrow, about 16 miles (26 km). Another western route ran entirely on the Great Western Main Line. This was between London Paddington and Reading, about 36 miles (58 km).

Stations Served by TfL Rail

Stations served by TfL Rail

Station	Image	Dates	Location
		Served from	Zone	Local authority
Reading		15 December 2019	N/A	Reading
Twyford				Wokingham
Maidenhead				Windsor and Maidenhead
Taplow				May 2018	Buckinghamshire
Burnham					Slough
Slough
Langley				May 2018
Iver					Buckinghamshire
West Drayton			6		Hillingdon
Heathrow Terminal 5		Diversions only
Heathrow Terminal 4		May 2018
Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3
Hayes & Harlington			5	Ealing
Southall			4
Hanwell
West Ealing			3
Ealing Broadway
Acton Main Line
London Paddington			1	City of Westminster
London Liverpool Street		31 May 2015	1	City of London
Stratford			2/3	Newham
Maryland			3
Forest Gate
Manor Park			3/4
Ilford			4	Redbridge
Seven Kings
Goodmayes
Chadwell Heath			5
Romford			6	Havering
Gidea Park
Harold Wood
Brentwood			9	Brentwood
Shenfield			C

Former Train Services

Shenfield Branch Trains

A Class 315 and Class 345 train at London Liverpool Street

TfL Rail took over the Shenfield line services on May 31, 2015. They later brought in a new fleet of Class 345 trains. On June 22, 2017, these new Class 345 trains started carrying passengers on the Shenfield line. The older Class 315 trains were kept at the Ilford depot. The new Class 345 trains were maintained at both Old Oak Common and Ilford depots.

Heathrow Branch Trains

TfL Rail took over the Heathrow Connect service on May 20, 2018. They used five Class 360 trains for this. These trains ran every half hour to Heathrow. On July 30, 2020, the newer Class 345 trains started running on the Heathrow line. The last Class 360 trains were removed from service in September 2020.

Reading Branch Trains

On September 26, 2019, TfL Rail announced they would take over the stopping services from Paddington to Reading. This happened on December 15, 2019. They used Class 345 trains instead of the Class 387 and Class 165 trains used by Great Western Railway. Before the main change, six GWR services a day started using Class 345 trains from November 25, 2019. This helped drivers get ready for the full switch.

Typical Train Schedule

Before the Elizabeth line opened on May 24, 2022, here was a typical weekday off-peak service:

Trains Used by TfL Rail

Trains Now Part of the Elizabeth Line

Train Class	Image	Type	Top Speed		Carriages	Number	Routes Used	Built	Years in Service
			mph	km/h
Class 315		Electric Train	75	120	4	8	Liverpool Street – Shenfield	1980–1981	1980–2022
Class 345 Aventra		Electric Train	90	145	7 or 9	70	Liverpool Street – Shenfield Paddington – Reading Paddington – Heathrow Airport	2015–2019	June 2017–present

Trains No Longer Used by TfL Rail

These trains were used by TfL Rail but are no longer in service:

Train Class	Image	Type	Top Speed		Carriages	Number	Routes Used	Built	Withdrawn
			mph	km/h
Class 360 Desiro		Electric Train	100	160	5	5	London Paddington – Heathrow Terminal 4 (Heathrow Connect)	2004–2005	2020

See also

In Spanish: TfL Rail para niños