Calls are growing for Transport for London (TfL) to improve services at one of its newer west London stations used by more than 2 million people a year.
Commuters living near Acton Main Line station, which opened in 2019, have launched a petition urging TfL to improve the frequency of services, particularly at rush hour. At the moment, the station is served by six trains an hour at peak times.
This is two more than the four an hour which stopped when the station opened six years ago. However, annual passenger attendance has increased by around 536 per cent since the station opened.
In 2019/20, 350,930 passengers used the station. In 2023/24, the station served over 2.2 million passengers – and whilst daytime services have been doubled, peak hours remain an area of concern for commuters.
Vera, 21, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that she doesn’t often opt for the Acton Main Line, due to the infrequency. She said: “It’s quite uncommon for me to come here, I usually use another line, but I’m late to work [today].
“I use the other routes more because they come more often. I’ve got here and it’s a long wait, so yeah, I think it would be a good idea to have more trains stop here.”
Helena, 28, is one of the signatories of a petition calling on TfL to increase the number of trains stopping at the station – so far the petition has reached over 2,300 signatures. She told the LDRS: “To be honest, I think it should stop here every five minutes.
“My mum was here the other day in the morning, and she had to wait in a big crowd, the staff wouldn’t let them onto the platform because that was so overcrowded too. It’s getting better, but it’s not perfect. Once the new flats are built, we will definitely need more.”
Residents like Helena have long been calling for improvements to the station, especially as planning permission continues to be granted to large housing developments in the vicinity. In April, Ealing Council approved plans for a huge project directly outside the station featuring over 1,200 new homes.
The LDRS has boarded trains at rush hour from Acton Main Line and witnessed packed platforms and trains crammed with commuters, causing hot conditions and inaccessible services for the elderly and disabled. On Thursday, the LDRS witnessed an elderly passenger faint only minutes after boarding a packed train.
When she came to, she blamed the heat, overcrowding and poor air conditioning.
Rupa Huq, MP for Ealing Central and Acton, told the LDRS that she has raised this issue directly with TfL a number of times, and has met rail ministers to discuss the problem.
She told the LDRS: “It is a continual sense of frustration for those using Acton Main Line that trains are infrequent, cancelled and delayed. Often when they arrive they are too full for constituents to get on. I have asked about this in Parliament.”
She added: “Sadly the solution is quite complex; the platform sizes at stations like Acton Main Line and West Ealing Ealing are unable to accommodate all trains as these were not intended to have every train stop there historically – they are ‘relief line’ not ‘main line’. I have continually requested a solution but it’s also to do with the age of overhead wires. To fix this an overhaul of signalling system would be needed which is not being contemplated in the immediate term. I am optimistic and keep trying.”
A TfL spokesperson said: “Since TfL began operating Elizabeth line services at Acton Main Line, we have doubled the all-day frequency at the station and added two extra trains towards central London, during the high peak hour. We welcome all feedback on our services and continue to work alongside industry partners to review future options for the timetable, which is developed in conjunction with Network Rail and shared with other passenger and freight operators.
“Alongside this, we have introduced various activities to mitigate any difficulties boarding trains at Acton Main Line. Driver announcements and a customer engagement campaign encourage customers to move down inside the carriage and remove their backpacks. A new microphone system also enables staff members to encourage customers to disperse along the length of the platform, and information is now provided on screens in the ticket hall about how busy each carriage is.
“Looking further to the future, TfL has placed an order for ten additional Elizabeth line trains which will serve the new station at Old Oak Common when it opens, as well as enable additional services to cater for demand and growth on the Elizabeth line.”
An Ealing Council spokesperson said: “We’re working hard to ensure the borough continues to be one of the best places to live, work, and play in the country. Along with outstanding schools and some of London’s best green spaces, one of the factors that makes the borough of Ealing so appealing are its first-rate transport links.
“The number of tube stations in Acton make it attractive for development and it has undergone substantial regeneration in recent years, reflecting rules set out in the London Plan which make housing development more likely at sites near public transport connections. The new developments include hundreds of homes for social rent, to help tackle the borough’s affordable housing crisis.
“Ealing Council’s Local Plan and 20-minute neighbourhoods policy seek to ensure places have the infrastructure needed to support growth, with development focused in the most sustainable locations, where there is good access to public transport and walking and cycling is promoted.
“We work closely with Transport for London (TfL). It can comment on larger planning applications, and we are working together to improve services at Acton Main Line, where TfL has promised more frequent stopping services. Additional trains will be provided in due course.”
