Woolwich Elizabeth Line Station
Woolwich, London, UK · Construction completed 2021, Elizabeth Line opened May 2022 · Part of the overall Crossrail/Elizabeth Line project (approx. £18.9bn overall project cost). Specific cost for Woolwich station not publicly disaggregated.
The judgement call
Account-gated at launch* Design subtly references the military past of the site through features like brickwork, cladding with Britannia and Lion motifs, and tiled pillars in regimental colours. * The station is a key catalyst for the regeneration of the Royal Arsenal site. * Emphasis on creating a skilled workforce, with apprentices and graduates gaining experience across the project lifecycle. * Thousands of tonnes of excavated earth were used to create a new RSPB reserve in Essex, demonstrating sustainable practices.
Key engineering challenges
* Constructing an underground station on the historic Royal Arsenal site, requiring careful consideration of heritage. * Integrating the station into a wider regeneration masterplan, connecting it with new homes and public spaces. * Delivering diaphragm walls and bearing piles for the 276-meter-long station box. * Plant installation and finishing works at the two portals where trains surface from the Thames Tunnel.
Project facts
- Client / owner
- Transport for London (TfL), Crossrail (now Elizabeth Line)
- Lead contractor
- Balfour Beatty
- Lead designers
- Weston Williamson + Partners (WW+P) (architects); Mott MacDonald (design partners)
- Project type
- new build
- Scale
- 276-meter-long underground station; serves 56,000 passengers a day; part of a masterplan including 3,750 new homes.
- Disciplines
- Architecture; civil; structural; mechanical; electrical; geotechnical; urban planning
- Standards & frameworks
- Crossrail standards; London Underground standards; CDM Regulations
Sources: * Balfour Beatty (Undated), "Woolwich Station, Elizabeth Line, London", https://www.balfourbeatty.com/what-we-do/projects/woolwich-station-elizabeth-line-london/ * Weston Williamson + Partners (WW+P) (Undated), "Woolwich Elizabeth line station", https://www.wwparchitects.com/projects/woolwich-elizabeth-line-station/ * PBC Today (2021), "Crossrail hands over Woolwich Elizabeth line station", https://www.pbctoday.co.uk/news/planning-construction-news/woolwich-elizabeth-line-station/95258/