Southern Rail Access to Heathrow Airport - proposal
Southern Rail Access to Heathrow Airport map
Part of the Department for Transport’s (DfT) long-term plan to develop the UK’s rail infrastructure is the delivery of a new rail link that connects the south and south west more directly to Heathrow Airport.
Where?
The London Borough of Hounslow supports proposals for a new rail line to Heathrow Airport that includes a new station serving Bedfont, connecting to Feltham and London Waterloo.
Why?
As there is currently no direct rail link to Heathrow from the south, the line and station proposed could bring a number of benefits to the west of the borough, including:
Direct journey times from London Waterloo to Heathrow T5 would take between 43 and 56 minutes, and journeys from Bedfont to Heathrow T5 would take approximately 9 minutes..
- Approximately 37.6 ha of new green, residential and mixed-use community spaces at the new station in Bedfont and surrounding development area.
- A viable Elizabeth Line terminus at Heathrow T5, cutting average journey times to Central London (Tottenham Court Road) from 60 minutes to approximately 35 minutes.
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In an area of the borough with the lowest public transport accessibility, local residents will benefit from quick access by train to Heathrow and Waterloo via the new station.
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Hounslow Council consulted on this scheme in 2015 with the majority of local residents supporting. Cabinet Report on Southern Rail Access to Heathrow (January 2016)
When?
Plans for southern rail access have been put forward by a number of independent stakeholders, however, not all of these proposals include plans to build a new station at Bedfont (limiting investment opportunities and other benefits to the West of the Borough).
In addition, other proposals have not received approvals from the National Rail Peer Review. All proposals are currently at the concept stage.
