Yesterday I had the pleasure of visiting the Crossrail site at Bond Street alongside another London MP and the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP.
Crossrail, or the Elizabeth Line as it will be known once completed, is the new high frequency, high capacity railway for London and the South East. When the service opens Crossrail trains will travel from Reading to Brentwood, with branches to Heathrow Airport and Greenwich.
Whilst Sutton will not be having a Crossrail station coming here (but will benefit from Crossrail 2), Sutton has still enjoyed many benefits from the construction of Crossrail. 16 local people have been taken on by Crossrail and 2 Sutton residents are currently on an apprenticeship.
Crossrail has also benefitted local businesses. The project has created work for G4S and Lerch Bates Ltd, two big companies with offices in Sutton, but also for eight small and medium sized businesses based here:
- Activ-Air Automation Ltd on the Kimpton Industrial Estate,
- Armadillo Safeguards Ltd based in Lower Road, Sutton,
- ENOTRAC UK Ltf based in Sutton Town Centre,
- IRIS Group based in Upper Mulgrave Road, Cheam,
- JR Hoarding based on Reigate Avenue, Sutton,
- S D Engineering based in Upper Mulgrave Road, Cheam,
- and Transitions London C.I.C. based in Willis Avenue, Sutton.
Crossrail will bring huge benefits to London and whilst Sutton may not be getting a Crossrail train coming here yet, I am glad that we are benefitting in other ways.