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North and West London Light Railway

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The North and West London Light Railway (NWLLR), formerly known as the Brent Cross Railway, is a proposal for a light rail system in North and West London in the UK. It was put forward by the London group of the Campaign for Better Transport and by the Coalition for a Sustainable Brent Cross Cricklewood.[1]

North and West London Light Railway
LocationLondon, UK
ProposerCampaign for Better Transport
Project websiteBrent Cross campaign page at the Wayback Machine (archived 30 September 2009)
StatusProposal
TypeLight rail
StakeholdersCampaign for Better Transport and Barnet, Brent, Harrow, Ealing councils
North & West London
Light Railway
Legend
Proposed route
 Finchley Central London Underground
Mill Hill East London Underground
Copthall
Grahame Park Way
Colindale London Underground
Colindeep Lane
Kingsbury Road
Hendon National Rail
Brent Cross West
Brent Cross
Brent Cross South
Brent Cross Shopping Centre
Brent Cross West National Rail
Cricklewood National Rail
Mill Lane
West Hampstead London UndergroundLondon OvergroundNational Rail
Finchley Road London Underground
Edgware Road Brent
Gladstone Park
Dudden Hill
Wembley Stadium National Rail
Tokyngton
Brent Park
Neasden London Underground
Taylors Lane
Craven Park
Harlesden London UndergroundLondon Overground
North Acton London Underground
Park Royal Court
Park Royal London Underground
Alliance Road
West Acton London Underground
Hanger Lane South
Ealing Broadway London UndergroundNational RailElizabeth line
Connecting line details
Grahame Park Way
Copthall
Northern line
to Edgware
Mill Hill East
Colindale
Northern line
to High Barnet
 Finchley Central
Colindeep Lane
Northern line
High Barnet Branch
Kingsbury Road
Midland Main Line
Hendon
Hendon Central
Brent Cross West
Brent Cross
Brent Cross South
Northern line
Edgware branch
Midland Main Line
Brent Cross Shopping Centre
Chiltern Main Line
Brent Cross West
Wembley Stadium
Tokyngton
Edgware Road Brent
Brent Park
London–Aylesbury line
Metropolitan & Jubilee lines
Gladstone Park
Dudden Hill
Neasden
Cricklewood
North London line
Mill Lane
West Hampstead
Chiltern Main Line
North London line
Finchley Road
Midland Main Line
Taylors Lane
Metropolitan & Jubilee lines
Craven Park
Harlesden
Watford DC & Bakerloo lines
West Coast Main Line
North London line
 
Acton–Northolt line
Central line
 
North London line
 North Acton
Alliance Road
Piccadilly line
Park Royal Court
Acton–Northolt line
Central line
West Acton
Park Royal
Great Western Main Line
District & Piccadilly lines
 Hanger Lane South
Ealing Broadway
Great Western Main Line

The proposal, published in 2008, envisaged a rapid transit network using existing or abandoned railway corridors and would have been similar to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR).[2] It was promoted in the context of the Brent Cross Shopping Centre expansion project, a major urban planning scheme that involves the redevelopment of Brent Cross and northern Cricklewood.[3] The stated aim was to alleviate anticipated traffic problems when this development goes ahead.[4][5]

The NWLLR has not been approved or funded.

Overview

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The Campaign for Better Transport aimed to reduce CO2 emissions, pollution and cars on the roads. It has said that high-intensity bus services in Brent Cross create more pollution and traffic jams.[6]

Route

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The route would have had 34 stations on four lines:[7]

Core proposal

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The freight-only Dudding Hill line, which features in the proposal

The proposal suggested that the service could be light rail, similar to the Docklands Light Railway. The core proposal envisaged a line running east–west across north London from Brent Cross to Park Royal,[5] with extensions to Ealing Broadway and Wembley Stadium, and a new line running north–south from Finchley Central through Brent Cross to Finchley Road.

The routes would have used a combination of existing passenger railway lines, freight lines and disused lines, linked by stretches of new track. The network was to include the Dudding Hill Line, the Ealing Broadway branch of the Central line and freight tracks parallel to the Midland Main Line.[4]

Political views

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The current and NWLLR-proposed rail track at North Acton

The proposal had limited support from some local councils, but lacked the funding or support from the Greater London Authority that is necessary to undertake project costings or a feasibility study. The proposal was not supported by the site developers at Brent Cross and relied on changes being made to their plans.[4]

In April 2009, Ealing Council voted to call on Transport for London to look into the proposal and discuss its strategic potential with neighbouring councils.[8] Harrow Council gave its support in principle, but stating that unless Transport for London provided "funding for a feasibility study to examine this proposal ... no more public money should be directed towards this proposal."[9] In 2009 Brian Coleman, the mayor of Barnet and London Assembly Member for Barnet and Camden, said "It's not feasible, it won't happen. Ideas like this are thought up by men who probably still have a train set in the attic."[10] Later that year, Barnet Council voted to request the developers to maintain contact with the light rail promoters.[11] In January 2011, Brent Council voted to call on Transport for London to look into the proposal and discuss its strategic potential with neighbouring councils.[12][13] In January 2014, Barnet Council voted that "much-needed orbital rail links should be investigated, routes safeguarded and included in financial planning", but it removed a reference in the original motion to "light-rail".[14]

In April 2019, £320M of funding was approved for a new Brent Cross West station, that would also serve the potential new service.[15]

Other proposals

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A similar proposal was put forward by West London Business in 2008 to build a Surbiton-to-Brent Cross underground railway, called the West London Orbital.[16] In 2009, the London Assembly proposed using the Dudding Hill Line section of the route for a new London Overground service.[17] From 2016 a different scheme of the same name was developed by the West London Alliance boroughs, TfL and the GLA. This scheme features in the 2018 Mayor's Transport Strategy.[18]

References

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  1. ^ Coalition for a Sustainable Brent Cross Cricklewood Transport briefing material, 2009 onwards
  2. ^ Flintoff, John-Paul (17 September 2009). "Orbital rail the solution to city congestion?". The Times. Archived from the original on 25 September 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  3. ^ "Brent Cross Cricklewood - a new Town Centre". Brent Cross Cricklewood Partners. 2009. Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 7 January 2010.
  4. ^ a b c "Reducing Car Use: Proposals for a Brent Cross Railway" (PDF). London Campaign for Better Transport. 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 August 2010. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b "New rail line needed to tackle traffic at Brent Cross". Campaign for Better Transport. 23 January 2008. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  6. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 3 June 2011.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ "Brent Cross Railway - possible eventual network" (PDF). Campaign for Better Transport. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 October 2011.
  8. ^ "Notes Of Council Meeting - 21st April 2009". Ealing Council. Archived from the original on 20 December 2014. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
  9. ^ "Minutes of the Meeting of the Council" (PDF). Harrow London Borough Council. 2 April 2009. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  10. ^ Wilkey, Susanna (26 February 2009). "New tramline gathers speed". Hampstead and Highgate Express. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  11. ^ "Decisions of the Planning and Environment Committee". Barnet London Borough Council. 18–19 November 2009. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
  12. ^ "Railway for north west London proposed". Willesden and Brent Times. 3 February 2011. Retrieved 13 February 2011.
  13. ^ "Meeting of Council, Monday 24 January 2011 7.00 pm (Item 11.)". Brent Council. 24 January 2011. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  14. ^ "London Borough of Barnet motion on orbital rail links" (PDF).
  15. ^ "Funding for homes and a new railway station in North London". 15 March 2019.
  16. ^ "West London Orbital 2008 Update – a summary" (PDF). West London Business. April 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2011. Retrieved 16 December 2009.
  17. ^ Coalition for a Sustainable Brent Cross Cricklewood Briefing material on new London Overground service
  18. ^ "West London Orbital". Transport for London. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
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