The Crossrail is an ongoing project in the UK that has been highly publicised recently due to its rapid development which will soon add to London’s integrated transport system.
To provide some context, the Crossrail is a 120km railway-line running through Shenfield all the way to Reading, with stop-offs near London’s financial hub of Canary Wharf. What this £15bn project aims to do is link more rural//outer areas into Central London, whilst also providing valuable commuting links to ensure that an extra 1.3 million people have a maximum of a 45minute commute, thus increasing productivity and it is estimated that the Crossrail programme will add an estimated £42bn to the economy.
The Crossrail is also benefitting society, in the way that it is bringing regeneration to many derelict areas near the Docklands therefore providing more employment and creating a positive multiplier effect to stimulate economic growth further, not to mention that Crossrail and its supply chain will further create much needed jobs to reduce urban deprivation levels (estimated 55,000 full-time jobs which does not include a plethora of service sector jobs which would also be stimulated) which in London are surprisingly high.
However with most capital-intensive projects, there is much opposition to the Crossrail project due to the fact that many argue that the £15bn could be spent in much better ways, directly targeting the urban poor and deprived rather than indirectly affecting them slightly, for example by funding more regeneration projects similar to Stratford’s a couple years ago which has had a plethora of positive benefits for example by providing affordable houses. Also, many people argue that this project is just another scheme to direct all of the country’s wealth and economic power into London therefore what has been proposed alongside the Crossrail development is to create a “Northern Powerhouse” which will include linking regional “cores” such as Manchester, Sheffield etc. to create a hub in the North to attempt to compete with the hub of London.
All in all, I do think the Crossrail should go ahead. As stated before, the £42bn expected to turn in can combat most of the arguments against, for example these funds can go to reducing urban deprivation.
Aksaan Arif
Bancroft's School
