Crossrail buying 2100 passenger cars

[blue streak 1]

The great Britian commuter agency that is part of suburban GB and to the SE coast has just announced they are buying 600 cars immediately and the bulk over the nex few years. The 600 cars will allow an additional 60 train sets to be operated and no figure for the full 2100 was available to this poster due to no figure of any retirements. Cost was listed at  L 1B   but not for how many cars.

Now why is it that a relative population &small area that Cross Rail serves be able to really go for expansion? Any of your GB posters supply info? 

[schlimm]

http://www.crossrail.co.uk/news/press-releases/crossrail-moves-forward-with-major-train-depot-contract-

There are several pages giving a lot of info.  It goes through the heart of London (hardly small population) and they are also building tunnels (ARC NJ, anyone?)

[blue streak 1]

My point as I did not state very well is here are 2100 new cars in a population & area equivalent to the NYC area? 

[daveklepper]

They probably need a lot of cars both for exansion and for replacement of obsolete equipment.

[cogloadreturns]

On the right lines but...not quite. Crossrail is a project to drive a two line tunnel East to West and so link the Main Great Western into Paddington with the former Great Eastern out of Liverpool Street and the Southern at Abbey Wood. It has been a project many many years in the planning and is to cost a cool £15bn smackers. This will create the long held cross London dream with folk from the eastern hinterland being able to get to say, London Heathrow airport without having to fight their way on the underground.

The total number of new vehicles being ordered is 600, but there are various add-ons with other projects (the Thameslink upgrade being one) - which in turn will see existing fleets being "cascaded" to other passenger train franchises.  It must be remembered that in the UK the passenger fleet and the franchises to run passenger trains are very tightly controlled by the Department of Transport - in fact the franchises are basically management contracts.

The number of new carriages which are expected to be ordered up to 2019 are:

West Coast - 106 vehicles

National Express East Anglia - 120 vehicles

London Midland - 69 vehicles

Chiltern - 8 (!!)

Thameslink - 1200 vehicles

Crossrail  - 600

Trans Pennine - 36

The total above is 2139, but there are talks with London Midland to order more, and that excludes the new InterCity Express Programme (to replace the 125 High Speed Train), plus any extra orders which the devolved governments in Scotland or Wales may wish to make.

I would take issue with the small area/ population. The population of "London" as constituted in it's present boundaries is slated to rise to around 8.5-9m folk within 20years, and the line will serve the hinterland which is another 4-5m fiolk on top. There is a fairly substantial potential clientele, plus that part of the world is the wealthiest in Europe. Crossrail could be expanded (google Superlink) and it's remit enlarged but fiscal constraints and a London centric viewpoint have put paid to that sadly...however I hope the above has helped shed some light on what is going on.

Yeghes da.