A new £750 million London Underground line has moved a step closer to being extended after a council said there are ‘no engineering constraints’ to the proposed project.
The Northern line currently terminates at Battersea Power Station. This section itself is new as the stop, as well as Nine Elms Station, was opened in 2021.
Now, the Northern line could be extended even further to Clapham Junction.
The station is a very busy interchange in South London, which recorded 22,858,198 entries and exits between April 2023 and March 2024, according to the Office for Rail and Road (ORR).
It provides National Rail services north to Waterloo as well as to various destinations in the south.
An initial feasibility study into the Tube plan by Wandsworth Council has concluded that there is a ‘lack of constraints’, the New Civil Engineer reports.
The document stated: “A Tube service could attract additional transport users, ease overcrowding on existing rail and bus services and support additional development in the Clapham Junction area – at the same time a Northern Line connecting Clapham Junction to Waterloo could replicate to an extent the service already provided by South Western railway.
“Transport for London (TfL) are also reported to be reviewing the safeguarded route for Crossrail 2 – land at Clapham Junction is safeguarded for Crossrail 2 and if Crossrail 2 were to be resurrected it would provide a direct rail link between Balham/Tooting, Clapham Junction and Central London.”
The extension of the Northern line to Battersea Power Station cost £1.1billion. This consisted of two new stops.
The council report suggests that an extension to Clapham Junction would cost at least £750 million to build, ianVisits reports.
This would be for the interchange station, between 1.6 miles (2.6km) and 1.9 miles (3km) of new tunnels, and two ventilation shafts.
The bill is likely to be paid by TfL’s capital budget, which is funded by the Government.
Money could also be obtained via private investment, as with some of the funding for the previous extension.
In addition, Wandsworth and Lambeth Councils could contribute a share if they receive cash from local developers.
