Network Rail completes improvements at key Elizabeth line station

Credit: Network Rail

Elizabeth line passengers using Ilford station will now benefit from significant improvements following the opening of a new entrance building.

Network Rail has completed work on a new, modern station entrance that is accessible from street to platform via three new lifts.  

The new entrance building is a modern, bright and spacious ticket hall with an improved gateline to encourage ease of movement into and out of the station. For the majority of visitors to Ilford and regular passengers at the station, the new entrance will serve as a gateway to the town centre. The staffed ticket office will provide passengers with assistance and ticketing services along with ticket machines to enable self-service.

The opening of three new lifts provides step-free access to all platforms for the first time ever since the station’s opening in 1839, significantly improving access to Elizabeth line services for all passengers.

The work also represents the significant completion of all major station upgrade work by Network Rail for the Crossrail project in east and west London. These completed station upgrades include new and refurbished ticket hall entrances and offices, new lifts, platform extensions, new and refurbished footbridges, a bay platform at Shenfield and a complete rebuild of the station at Abbey Wood in south-east London.

Under Secretary of State for Transport, Baroness Vere, said: “The Elizabeth line is a fantastic state-of-the-art service offering cheaper and faster travel across London and everyone deserves to be able to access it. As a result of almost £3 billion of government funding to make stations along the line more accessible, Ilford station has been rebuilt into a spacious new ticket hall with three new lifts to make travel across London a reality for everyone.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “These upgrades at Ilford station form part of our promise to make travel easier, more comfortable, and more accessible for millions of passengers, boosting connectivity across London and the South East as we build a better London for everyone.”

Ellie Burrows, Network Rail’s Route Director for Anglia, said: “Having completed the new station entrance building for Ilford, passengers will start to benefit from a modern, spacious facility with access to the Elizabeth line. It is a fantastic improvement for Ilford and the new lifts will make a huge difference to everyone that wants to travel on the Elizabeth line which is already revolutionising the way passengers get across London. The opening of Ilford station’s new entrance is the last major piece of work for Network Rail’s stations upgrade programme for Crossrail which is a significant achievement by thousands of people for current and future generations of rail users.”

Howard Smith, TfL’s Director of the Elizabeth line, said: “Ilford station’s new entrance is a significant and important improvement for our customers. I’m very pleased that people with mobility needs as well as those with children in buggies or customers carrying heavy luggage can now access the transformational Elizabeth line from this station with greater ease, improving their journeys.”

Ilford station’s new gateline. Credit: Network Rail