The Latest Breaking News from Elizabeth Line

If you were unsure as to whether Crossrail had captured Londoners’ imagination, you needed only to witness the joyous scenes both outside and inside Paddington station this morning. Hundreds of people lined up — some since midnight — not to purchase the latest Harry Potter book or get an appointment…

There was a huge rush to board the first trains as Mayor Sadiq Khan showed a massive sigh of relief

Everything you need to know about the Crossrail project, the Elizabeth Line route and the 2022 opening date

Some were surprised to see the part-overground line on the iconic Underground map

The vast engineering project will cut journey times significantly across the capital.

A station was cleared within hours of the first passengers taking to the new route

The station was evacuated shortly after 8.30am, just two hours after the opening of the new TfL service

Owner of property in Chinatown, Soho and Covent Garden returns to profit as rents increase

Only a few hours after the first train left the station on the brand new Elizabeth Line, Paddington Station was evacuated after a fire alert

‘We should be incredibly proud of this fantastic new line. It is genuinely 22nd-century fit: spacious, speedy, silent, comfortable’ – Sadiq Khan

Crossrail project opens 41 months after original launch date