Colin Chapman, vice president of the Strategic Forecasting Group
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Heathrow rail link proposals unveiled
By Paul RobinsJuly 01, 2009
Striking proposals to improve rail access between Reading and Heathrow were discussed by transport bosses yesterday.
Plans were unveiled to link the Great Western main line from Paddington through Slough and Reading to Bristol and South Wales.
Delegates cast their eye over six routes being considered to link the main line to Heathrow Airport in a study drawn up by engineering consultancy Atkins.
One option would see a westbound line built at the exit of the Heathrow tunnel, enabling heavy rail services to operate directly from the airport to Reading.
The cost is estimated at £460 million but representatives were told the project would face property rights and engineering issues.
Other possibilities presented by Atkins transport development director Warwick Lowe included extending the London Underground to Slough, either through a direct tunnel costing £1,190 million or making use of the current Windsor lines, costing nearly half the amount.
A direct rail link between Terminal 5 and the Great Western main line, using a track that runs west out of the airport, is also considered.
The conference at the Hilton Hotel Reading – organised by Thames Valley Economic Partnership and Berkshire Economic Strategy Board – also updated business bosses on the £848 million revamp of Reading station.
Colin Chapman, vice president of the Strategic Forecasting Group, described Reading as a congestion hotspot and said improving its transport links were “central to attracting new business in the future”.
