Plans for a new £175m southern rail link to Heathrow, which would whisk passengers from the airport to Waterloo and Victoria stations in central London in 30 minutes, were unveiled yesterday, writes Keith Harper .
The project, named Airtrack, is expected to attract 5m passengers, many of whom are now car drivers.
Utilising, where possible, old railway land north of Staines, the line will run alongside the M25 before entering a tunnel to Heathrow.
British Airway's Gwilym Rees-Jones, Janet Goodland of Railtrack and Paul Leblond of BAA are pictured inspecting the disused land.
The line offers the potential of direct rail connections to the airport from a wide geographical area to the south and west, including Reading, Guildford, Woking and Basingstoke.
Railtrack, BAA, the airport's operator, and British Airways yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding to build the line by 2006.
An integral part of the plan is the provision of additional facilities, including remote check-in and luggage handling. The partners said that the idea had the support of many local authorities. Detailed investigations would now be carried out into the operational and environmental problems.
Paul LeBlond, BAA's director of rail strategy, said: "There is a long way to go, but each step brings us closer to the vision of Heathrow as the UK's leading integrated aviation hub." The project will help fulfil BAA's aim of encouraging 50 per cent of Heathrow's passengers to use public transport. The current figure is around 35 per cent.
Ms Goodland, Railtrack's London director, said: "Heathrow remains one of London's biggest challenges in growing rail travel and taking cars off the road."
