London’s other railway holds many lessons for Toronto, Mayor John Tory
While Tory is fixated on the experience of Crossrail, experts say London Overground has transformed commuting

TheStar.com
Nov. 3, 2015
Jennifer Pagliaro

“It’s a big train set,” says Mike Stubbs, head of London Overground’s rail network, as he sits in from of an unfurled map of the city’s train corridors in a meeting room inside Transport for London’s offices.

When Mayor John Tory visited London last week, much of his trip was dedicated to transit — specifically what lessons could be drawn from the success of a massive heavy-rail project known as Crossrail.

But while in London, Tory did not investigate the success of another railway — London Overground — what may be even more applicable to provincial plans for regional express rail and his own vision for a heavy-rail line dubbed SmartTrack.

The Star met with Stubbs to learn how his team transformed regional commutes in and around London using almost entirely existing rail and a hugely successful rebrand.

“It was a really underutilized asset,” Stubbs said. “It’s there, so it’s a matter of investing in it.”

Once run as national rail around Central London, Stubbs said the trains were covered in graffiti, the stations grubby and service unreliable. People were afraid to get on the train after dark, Stubbs said. He called one route as riding through “bandit country.”

In 2005, thanks to national legislation ushered in under then-prime minister Tony Blair, Transport for London was able to take over control of operating transit on the existing lines inside the Greater London Area.

They began better linking up the individual lines, purchased new open trains — similar to the new subway cars in Toronto — and fixed up the stations with fresh coats of paint, CCTV cameras and brand new “Overground” logos.

Now the service runs in an orbital route, connecting to Underground stations that take passengers farther into the heart of London and transporting commuters to jobs in the boroughs outside of the main financial hubs.

In 2008, when the new service opened, the Overground was carrying 33 million passengers a year. Today they are forecasting just over 176 million.

“That growth is without adding any more routes in,” Stubbs said.

He said a major focus was improving the quality of the service already being used, adding stations to the existing network — from 83 to more than 110 — and adding 20 to 35 per cent to the network in expansions and planning future electrification while garnering political support for their growth. Mayor Boris Johnson, who oversees Transport for London, has personally advocated for the expansion of trains from four to five cars.

“We’ve had all party support for everything we’ve done. They all want to be associated with it,” Stubbs said.

There has also been private interest, with developers buying into stations and expansion to rejuvenate local communities.

The line has been transformational for places such as Hackney, one of the most deprived boroughs in England, Stubbs said.

In another new neighbourhood, where a developer is looking to build thousands of new homes, they are partnering with TfL and the Overground team to expand the network and provide a new link to the commuter service.

“Crossrail is great, but that’s a big expensive project,” Stubbs said. “It’s about transforming underused, under-cared-for, underinvested railways — transforming communities because it gives people the ability to travel and jobs and that’s what we’ve done.”