16.12.15
TfL secures €4m EU funding for two new Old Oak stations
Transport for London (TfL) has secured €4m funding from the European Commission (EC), which it will match, to move forward options for new London Overground stations at Old Oak Common.
Station plans for Old Oak Common Lane and Hythe Road are expected to greatly improve the capital’s transport links, as well as provide an interchange with HS2 and Crossrail.
Connectivity between these wide-scale programmes is “essential” to the transformation of both Old Oak Common and the regeneration of Park Royal, one of the mayor’s key ‘opportunity areas’.
The new travel links could “radically cut” journey times to and from the area, opening up access to both the Clapham Junction to Stratford, and Richmond to London, Overground lines.
Richard de Cani, TfL’s managing director of planning, said: “Old Oak and Park Royal is one of the largest regeneration schemes in London for decades and will support 65,000 new jobs and 25,500 new homes. Good transport links are vital to the successful transformation of the area, and this funding will allow us to develop proposals for London Overground connectivity in the area.
“These new local links will connect Old Oak Common to two London Overground routes and will enable HS2 and Crossrail to interchange with the suburban rail network, easing potential pressure on Euston.”
Work on the proposals for the new Overground connections will start as part of a wider development plans for Old Oak and Park Royal, all led by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC), launched in April.
The corporation’s chairman and deputy mayor for planning, Sir Edward Lister, said: “HS2 and Crossrail represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform Old Oak and Park Royal into a thriving new part of London with thousands of new homes and jobs.
“This funding paves the way for us to progress the development of new stations that will help make Old Oak one of the best-connected parts of London and a key driver of economic prosperity for decades to come.”
The decision to build two new stations was one of the options included in a nine-week consultation that closed in November 2014, and was seen as the single preferred option after considering all feedback. This model will ensure two distinct catchment areas are served, maximising the link across west London.
The cash to drive these plans forward was awarded from the EC’s Connecting Europe Facility within the framework of the Trans-European Transport Network Scheme.