Mayor of London aims for growth through Overground takeover of suburban routes

London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan believes that handing over some Southeastern and Great Northern suburban rail routes to London Overground is vital for the capital’s economic success over the next decade. He wants to see more services, better stations, and cheaper fares.

In his London Growth Plan policy document, published at the end of February, Khan says that the multi-billion-pound investment will help drag London out of its current deep trough.

The city’s average productivity growth has slumped to just 0.12% every year since 2008, compared with 3.2% in the previous ten years.

Khan says he wants to bring what he describes as current poor commuter services up to the higher standard of the Overground.

The extra fares income and the estimated £27.5 billion extra tax that London would be contributing for HM Treasury would mean that three key projects (and possibly others) would pay for themselves.

The big prizes are the Bakerloo Line extension to Lewisham and beyond, taking the Docklands Light Railway to Thamesmead in north Kent, and creating the West London Orbital from Hounslow to Old Oak Common.

Khan claims that London is struggling because the current poor rail service fails to bring in enough skilled workers from the outer suburbs.

However, Labour is the latest government administration to resist his expansion attempts. One of the reasons is that many of the services he is targeting run far outside the capital - to the Kent and Sussex coast, Bedfordshire, and Norfolk.

The Department for Transport says changing their format would be too complex. Negotiating new contracts with rail unions is also a potential barrier.

Before last year’s General Election, then-Shadow Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said she was “not keen” to lose government control of Southeastern Metro services to Dartford, Hayes and Sevenoaks, nor the Great Northern services from Moorgate. She did not change her stance when she came to office.

Before Khan came into power, previous London mayors Boris Johnson and Ken Livingstone met similar resistance from Conservative ministers, even though Livingstone’s conversion of neglected routes in north London into part of the Overground is hailed as a great success.

All this is in sharp contrast to Manchester, where elected Mayor Andy Burnham has received almost universal support for his Bee Network, which will bring the area’s local heavy rail routes under his control and integrate services with Metrolink trams and buses.

As well as persuading people to travel from further afield, Transport for London feels constrained that it can only make rail investment plans on a year-to-year basis, when Network Rail does them over five. It is also aware that straightforward government funding could soon be in short supply.

Over the next 12 months, Kkan must find ways of securing vast sums of money to fulfil his economic strategy. A key initiative is a new London Reach and Inclusive Fund to attract high- growth small companies. He is also seeking loans from the private sector.

Generally, the London travel scene continues to evolve. The Elizabeth line has reduced the need for cross-capital travellers to have to visit the centre of the city, which has eased pressure on the Underground.

Separately, and much further north, the future opening of the East West Rail link from Oxford to Cambridge will provide a host of new cross-country travel opportunities that avoid London completely.

Kkan is pleased with his central London transport strategy. One success has been the £1.1bn Northern Line extension to Battersea Power Station, which opened in September 2021 and is expected to carry ten million passengers this year.

Improvements around King’s Cross and Stratford have also created economic wealth, and there are similar ambitions for Crossrail 2 between Wimbledon and Tottenham Hale, West London, the West End, the ThamesEstuary, and Smithfield in the Square Mile.

Five major London stations are also currently in line for upgrades: Euston; Liverpool Street; Stratford; Victoria; and Waterloo.

London rail projects to unlock new homes

Crossrail 2 - 250,000

DLR extension - 30,000

Southeastern takeover - 20,000

Bakerloo upgrades - 20,000

West London Orbital - 16,000

Great Northern takeover - 4,000

HS2 to Euston - 2,500