Network Rail to invest £800m to develop London Waterloo to boost capacity by 30 per cent
London Waterloo will become less busy and congested by 2019 after Network Rail piles £800m into developing the station.
The investment to improve London's busiest railway stations will provide extra seating and a fleet of new trains that will be longer, while providing a 30 per cent increase in peak time passenger capacity by 2019.
Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: "We are investing £40bn in our nation’s railway infrastructure – the biggest upgrade since the Victorian times."
“From 2017, passengers will benefit from a bigger and better London Waterloo station and 150 new train carriages providing more space for passengers arriving at London Waterloo over the three-hour morning peak – this is in addition to the 108 extra carriages that have already been added since 2013," he added.
"These improvements will make journeys better for hard working commuters, in the capital and across Britain.”
At Waterloo, the number of passenger journeys has more than doubled in the last 20 years to 234m per year, and further growth of 40 per cent by 2043 is forecast.
There will also be longer platforms and improved depots for the trains, benefiting the 99m passengers who pass through the station annually.
Platforms one to four will also extended to allow longer 10-car trains to run to suburban stations.