When Crossrail is fully opening, Elizabeth Line route map and journey times explained

London’s new £18.9bn Elizabeth line opens tomorrow after numerous delays and setbacks.

The delayed and overbudget line, built by the Crossrail project, will boost capacity and cut journey times for east-west travel across the capital.

The line is named in honour of the Queen, who visited Paddington station last week to celebrate the completion of Crossrail.

Here’s what you need to know.

Services will begin at 6.30am on Tuesday, with the first rain leaving Abbey Wood, in south east London, heading to Paddington.

Large numbers of transport enthusiasts are expected to be on the first departures.

The Elizabeth line stretches from Reading in Berkshire and Heathrow Airport in west London to Abbey Wood and Shenfield in Essex.

It will begin operating in three separate sections, which are expected to be integrated in the autumn.

Transport for London (TfL) estimates that annual passenger numbers will reach 170 million by 2026.

The new central section, which consists of ten stations, runs through tunnels from Paddington in west London to Abbey Wood.

It will initially be closed on Sundays – apart from during the Platinum Jubilee weekend – to allow further testing and software updates to take place.

TfL has released an official map showing the route of the Elizabeth line. For a full high resolution map, click here.

The nine latest stations are:
• The Elizabeth line will cut journey times from Abbey Wood, south-east London, to Paddington by almost half to 29 minutes.
• Journeys between Liverpool Street and Woolwich will also be halved to 15 minutes.
• Trips between Farringdon and Canary Wharf will take 10 minutes, instead of 24.