Construction of an extension of the Metropolitan Line in Watford will begin next year and complete in 2020, London Underground has confirmed.

 

Two new stations will be built at Cassiobridge and Watford Vicarage Road to help provide better connections to a hospital, new health campus, business park and industrial estate.

 

A full funding package for the £285M extension has now been agreed with Transport for London providing close to £50M, the Department for Transport around £110M and local funding partners £125M.

 

The line will be served by a train every 10 minutes during peak hours. Until now the extension project has been known as the Croxley Rail Link.

 

The extension will connect to the West Coast Mainline at Watford Junction and the existing Watford Metropolitan Line station will close upon completion of the extension. It is thought that the line will create over 6500 permanent jobs and provide a £2Bn boost to the local economy.

 

London Underground's managing director Nick Brown said: “For 100 years the Tube has been enabling growth in ‘Metroland’ and this new part of the Underground network will support further rapid development in the area. With the funding package complete we are now turning our attention to appointing contractors, finalising designs and beginning construction.”

 

Hertfordshire County Council cabinet member for transport Derrick Ashley said: "The Metropolitan Line Extension will make travel in and out of central London much easier for people in Watford and the surrounding areas. The line extension, alongside development in the area, presents a raft of fresh opportunities for the county."

 

Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership chairman John Gourd added: "The extension will unlock investment in brownfield sites, revitalise existing employment areas and bring considerable job opportunities and economic benefits to Watford and the wider community."

 

Watford Borough Council's managing director Manny Lewis said: "As well as providing significantly improved transport choices for local people, the project is absolutely critical to unlocking Watford's future economic and regeneration potential."

 

Three Rivers District Council Chief Executive Steven Halls added: "The expansion of the Metropolitan line will give a powerful boost to businesses and for creating jobs in Croxley Green as well providing extra travel options for residents, reducing carbon emissions and congestion on our roads."

 

♦ Meanwhile work to construct an extension of the Northern Line from Kennington to Battersea and Nine Elms got under way this week.

 

Main contractor Ferrovial Agroman Laing O'Rourke joint venture excavated the first ground at Battersea in advance of tube station and tunnelling construction. In total the scheme will see 600,000t of earth excavated from beneath south London.

 

(Photo: Peter Broster and licensed for reuse under this Creative Common Licence)