A City of London councillor has called for Crossrail 2 to be extended into the western part of the Square Mile to support projected growth in the Fleet Valley.
Common Councillor Shravan Joshi urged the City of London Corporation to make the request in its response to the draft London Plan, which sets out the capital’s development priorities.
Transport link sought for Fleet Valley growth
The Fleet Valley, just north of Fleet Street, has been identified as an area suitable for tall buildings. Joshi said the City’s worker population could increase by a third by 2050 and argued that transport planning needed to begin decades in advance.
“If we are going to promote the Fleet Valley as a development centre, a development area, [we need] infrastructure. And I’m not talking about utility infrastructure. It’s transport infrastructure,” he said.
He described the absence of a Crossrail 2 stop in the City as “disappointing”. The indicative route currently includes planned stops at Angel, Euston and Tottenham Court Road, but does not run through the Square Mile.
“If we are going to have that third of increase and it’s going to be focussed on that Fleet Valley area, we need that public transport to really match that growth,” Joshi said.
Crossrail 2 remains paused
Crossrail 2 is intended to provide a north-south rail link across London, connecting services from Hertfordshire through central London and into Surrey. The indicative route would connect with the Elizabeth line at Tottenham Court Road and with National Rail services including at Victoria.
The project was paused in October 2020 to allow further work on its design and development. Transport for London (TfL) is still awaiting a Government response to a business case submitted in 2021, and there is currently no timetable for restarting development work.
A TfL spokesperson said the safeguarded route had been developed following “extensive technical assessment” and public consultation, while taking account of transport needs, engineering constraints, costs and wider benefits.
“Crossrail 2 remains a priority for TfL and the Mayor of London, but the project is currently paused and there is no timetable for restarting development work,” the spokesperson said.
The consultation on the draft London Plan is due to close on 15 October. It will then proceed to an independent Examination in Public, with formal adoption expected in early 2028.