The Crossrail project is London’s biggest infrastructure product in decades. People have been waiting for it to open since late 2018. Now scheduled to open in the first half of 2022, the route should be one of the most useful and groundbreaking in London's history.

Starting in the county of Berkshire, West of London, the route begins at the huge station in the city/town of Reading. Reading has a population of just under 350,000 people, many of which travel into London for work, so the connection will be enjoyed by them. The next stops are in the towns of Twyford and Maidenhead, where it’s a simple swap of service, but their branch lines to the popular riverside towns of Henley-on-Thames and Marlow respectively are what make these stations popular. Then are the small village stations of Taplow and Burnham. These stations are mainly used by commuters into London. A short distance from Taplow is the town of Slough, which is often mocked by many as the most boring town in Britain. Whilst it doesn’t offer many tourist opportunities, it’s popular amongst commuters as its cheap and near to London. Plus, its location near the beautiful Black Park Country Park is often appreciated, and its a short train ride along a branch line from Slough to the riverside town of Windsor, home to Windsor Castle. After Slough come two more commuter towns, in Langley and Iver. Then comes West Drayton, which is similarly commuter focused, and is the first station to fall within Greater London. After West Drayton comes Hayes & Harlington, serving the towns of the same names. The station is significant as it is the first stop from the Heathrow branch of Crossrail, serving all four operational terminals. Southall comes next, which is famous for having all of its signs in bilingual, in English and Punjabi, to reflect the local community. It’s also nice to see that TfL kept this in mind during the renovation of the station, keeping Punjabi signs up around the station and even keeping the language in creation of new signs. The town of Hanwell, in the borough Ealing, comes next. The station has been largely starved of service in recent years, and now benefits from many more trains. Plus, it’s a beautiful station, as it hasn’t been changed much from it’s original state. West Ealing, the terminus of GWR’s Greenford branch, is the next station. The transformation of this station is astounding, with it going from a station falling apart, to being much larger and more spacious. Ealing Broadway was already impressive, as it is the terminus of the London Underground District and Central lines, but what was becoming an old station has been renovated, with a much nicer ticket hall. Acton Main Line has had a significant improvement, going from a small industrial ticket shed and two platforms, to having a fully fledged glass station building with a huge ticket office, new public square and lifts included. After Acton Main Line we enter into the core chunk. The line passes through completely new parts of existing tube stations: Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, Liverpool Street and Whitechapel, before splitting into two. One line heads south east, building a brand new line stopping at Canary Wharf, Custom House and Woolwich, before finally finishing at Abbey Wood, serving the Thamesmead development. To the north, it runs along the existing Great Eastern Main Line, serving the large towns of Stratford, Ilford, Romford and Brentwood, plus the smaller towns and villages along the line, stopping at Maryland, Forest Gate, Manor Park, Seven Kings, Goodmayes, Chadwell Heath, Gidea Park and Harold Wood, before terminating in the Essex town of Shenfield. 

Crossrail will certainly provide impressive connectivity to the South East of England, and those that will use it will enjoy fast, reliable and regular service, often not seen before, especially further out towards Reading and Shenfield

The Elizabeth line is scheduled to open in the first half of 2022