Heathrow Connect was a train service in London provided jointly by
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway and Heathrow ...
and
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
(GWR), between
Paddington station
Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
and
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
. The service followed the same route as the non-stop
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway and Heathrow ...
service but called at certain intermediate stations, connecting several locations in West London with each other, the airport, and Central London. It ran every half-hour throughout the day and evening. The service was launched on 12 June 2005 and ceased on 19 May 2018, when it was absorbed into the
TfL Rail
TfL Rail was the concession which operated commuter services on two separate railway lines in London, England and its environs whilst the Crossrail construction project linking these lines was underway. On 24 May 2022, upon the opening of th ...
concession, in advance of becoming part of the
Elizabeth line
The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid Urban rail, urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of London Paddington statio ...
once it opened on 24 May 2022.
History
In the late 1990s,
British Airports Authority
Heathrow Airport Holdings is the United Kingdom-based operator of Heathrow Airport. The company also operated Gatwick Airport, Stansted Airport, Edinburgh Airport and several other UK airports, but was forced by the Competition Commission to se ...
(BAA) built an
airport rail link
An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport from an airport to a nearby city by mainline or commuter trains, rapid transit, people mover, or light rail. Direct links operate straight to the airport terminal, while o ...
from
Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport (), called ''London Airport'' until 1966 and now known as London Heathrow , is a major international airport in London, England. It is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system (the others be ...
to
London Paddington station
Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great We ...
. This opened in June 1998, with non-stop
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway and Heathrow ...
trains taking just 15 minutes between Heathrow and Paddington.
In 2004,
First Great Western Link
First Great Western Link (FGWL) was a train operating company in England owned by FirstGroup that operated the Thames franchise from April 2004 until March 2006.
History
In April 2003 the Strategic Rail Authority invited FirstGroup and Go-Ahe ...
and BAA (the operators of Heathrow Express) planned a stopping service between Heathrow and Paddington, using train paths previously occupied by stopping services from
Slough
Slough () is a town and unparished area in the unitary authority of the same name in Berkshire, England, bordering west London. It lies in the Thames Valley, west of central London and north-east of Reading, at the intersection of the M4 ...
.
BAA spent £35m on the project, including the purchase of five new
Siemens Desiro
The Siemens Desiro (, , ) is a family of diesel or electric multiple unit passenger trains developed by Siemens Mobility, a division of the German Siemens AG conglomerate. The main variants are the Desiro Classic, Desiro ML, Desiro UK and the la ...
Class 360 trains.
In June 2005, the ''Heathrow Connect'' branded stopping service between Heathrow and Paddington was launched.
Although cheaper than Heathrow Express, the journey took around 25 minutes from Paddington, and ran less frequently. One benefit of the new service was that residents of West London (including airport staff) could reach the airport without needing to backtrack via Paddington.
Trains were owned and operated by Heathrow Airport Holdings through Heathrow Express.
From the opening of
Heathrow Terminal 5
Heathrow Terminal 5 is an airport terminal at Heathrow Airport, the main airport serving London. Opened in 2008, the main building in the complex is the largest free-standing structure in the United Kingdom. Terminal 5 is currently used exclusi ...
in 2008, Heathrow Connect provided a shuttle service between Heathrow Central and Terminal 4 to connect with Heathrow Express.
In May 2018, Heathrow Connect service were absorbed into
TfL Rail
TfL Rail was the concession which operated commuter services on two separate railway lines in London, England and its environs whilst the Crossrail construction project linking these lines was underway. On 24 May 2022, upon the opening of th ...
ahead of the new
Crossrail
Crossrail is a railway construction project mainly in central London. Its aim is to provide a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system crossing the capital from suburbs on the west to east, by connecting two major railway ...
project. In May 2022, TfL Rail services were rebranded as the
Elizabeth line
The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid Urban rail, urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of London Paddington statio ...
, with through trains running through central London from November 2022.
Heathrow Express services will continue to terminate at London Paddington.
Company
Structure
Heathrow Connect had a complex operating structure:
Heathrow Airport Holdings
Heathrow Airport Holdings is the United Kingdom-based operator of Heathrow Airport. The company also operated Gatwick Airport, Stansted Airport, Edinburgh Airport and several other UK airports, but was forced by the Competition Commission to se ...
(formerly BAA) supplied the rolling stock and on-board staff through its
Heathrow Express
Heathrow Express is a high-frequency airport rail link operating between London Heathrow Airport and . Opened in 1998, trains run non-stop, with a journey time of 15 minutes. The service is operated jointly by Great Western Railway and Heathrow ...
subsidiary, and owned the track from Airport Junction to the terminals. GWR collected the revenue for journeys between Paddington and
Hayes & Harlington, while Heathrow Airport Holdings collected the revenue for journeys between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow.
Fares
Fares between Paddington and Hayes & Harlington were the same as for GWR services, but the single fare between Hayes and Heathrow was £6.30 .
Oyster card
The Oyster card is a payment method for public transport in London (and certain areas around it) in England, United Kingdom. A standard Oyster card is a blue credit-card-sized stored-value contactless smart card. It is promoted by Transport ...
s,
Travelcard
The Travelcard is an inter-modal travel ticket for unlimited use on the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway, London Trams, London Buses and National Rail services in the Greater London area. Tr ...
s and
Freedom Pass
Freedom Pass is a concessionary travel scheme, which began in 1973, to provide free travel to residents of Greater London, England, who are aged 66 and over (the age of eligibility increased progressively from 60 in 2010 to 66 in 2020) or who ...
es were not valid between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow, but could be used throughout the rest of the route. When the service was first introduced in 2005, the fare for the journey from Hayes to Heathrow was £6, which at £2 per mile made it one of the most expensive train journeys in the world.
The service was designed principally for the use of airport staff and West London residents for travel to Heathrow or Paddington. With a staff ID card, discounted fares were available for the journey between Hayes and Heathrow.
Heathrow Connect was marketed as a cheaper way to reach Paddington from Heathrow and vice versa, with a single fare of £10.30 (less than half the Heathrow Express fare, but almost double the price of a
London Underground
The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...
journey) and a journey time of 25 minutes against the Express time of 15 minutes. Passengers were also permitted to use their Railcards to access discounts. Originally it was not intended to be used as a cheaper (but slower) alternative to the Heathrow Express service from Paddington to Heathrow: every Connect service was overtaken by an Express service en route, and at Paddington trains were originally advertised on departure boards as running to Hayes & Harlington only. Standard-class travel between Heathrow Airport terminals was free, and this included Heathrow Connect services.
Operations
Route
Heathrow Connect used the relief lines of the
Great Western Main Line
The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington to . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. Opened in 1841, it was the or ...
between Paddington and Airport Junction, replacing some stopping services operated by
First Great Western Link
First Great Western Link (FGWL) was a train operating company in England owned by FirstGroup that operated the Thames franchise from April 2004 until March 2006.
History
In April 2003 the Strategic Rail Authority invited FirstGroup and Go-Ahe ...
. As part of the original Heathrow Express project, these lines were
electrified
Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source.
The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...
at
25 kV AC
Railway electrification systems using alternating current (AC) at are used worldwide, especially for high-speed rail. It is usually supplied at the standard utility frequency (typically 50 or 60Hz), which simplifies traction substations. The d ...
overhead as a diversionary route, and feature
Automatic Train Protection
Automatic train protection (ATP) is a type of train protection system which continually checks that the speed of a train is compatible with the permitted speed allowed by signalling, including automatic stop at certain signal aspects. If it is ...
. An additional
flyover bridge was built in 2008 as part of
Crossrail
Crossrail is a railway construction project mainly in central London. Its aim is to provide a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system crossing the capital from suburbs on the west to east, by connecting two major railway ...
works to enable trains to enter or leave the airport spur without crossing any of the Great Western Main Line tracks.
Services initially terminated at
Heathrow Central. Following Heathrow Express services being diverted to
Terminal 5, from March 2008 Heathrow Connect services were extended to
Terminal 4.
The service pattern, , was as follows:
* Monday-Saturday, Heathrow Connect services ran half-hourly between and (for terminals 2 & 3), stopping at , , , and . In early mornings and late evenings, some Heathrow Connect services were extended beyond Heathrow Central to either
Terminal 4 or
Terminal 5.
* On Sundays, all Heathrow Connect services were extended to Terminal 4, but did not call at West Ealing or Hanwell. Service frequency was also reduced from half-hourly to hourly.
Rolling stock
Heathrow Connect used five-car
electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a numbe ...
s. Four were built by
Siemens Mobility
Siemens Mobility GmbH is a separately-managed company of Siemens, arising from a corporate restructuring effective 1 August 2018. With its global headquarters in Munich, Siemens Mobility has four core business units: Mobility Management, dedi ...
in
Krefeld
Krefeld ( , ; li, Krieëvel ), also spelled Crefeld until 1925 (though the spelling was still being used in British papers throughout the Second World War), is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located northwest of Düsseldorf, i ...
, Germany for
Angel Trains
Angel Trains is a British rolling stock company (ROSCO). Together with Eversholt Rail Group and Porterbrook, it is one of the three original ROSCOs.
Angel Trains was established in March 1994 as part of the privatisation of British Rail. In No ...
as demonstrator
Desiros. One was brought to
Northampton Kings Heath Siemens Depot
Northampton Kings Heath Siemens Depot is an Electric Traction Depot located in Northampton, Northamptonshire
Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London a ...
in 2002 before
South West Trains
Stagecoach South Western Trains Limited, trading as South West Trains (SWT), was an English train operating company owned by Stagecoach Group, Stagecoach, which operated the South Western franchise between February 1996 and August 2017.
SWT op ...
'
Class 450s were delivered. The others were used at the
Wildenrath Test Centre.
All four were purchased by Heathrow Connect and rebuilt before being sent to England. A fifth five-car set was delivered in November 2005, but did not enter service until December 2006. A fifth carriage was added to the original four four-car sets in 2006.
Replacement by TfL Rail
On 20 May 2018, TfL Rail took over the services operated by Heathrow Connect as a precursor to the full opening of the
Elizabeth line
The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid Urban rail, urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of London Paddington statio ...
,
which at that time was expected to take place in December 2018.
Fares on the service were integrated into the TfL fare scheme, and therefore matched the fare scheme of London Underground services, with the exception of a premium for single journeys to and from Heathrow using Pay As You Go (Oyster and contactless). Passengers are able to use Oyster cards, Travelcards and Freedom Passes to travel between Hayes & Harlington and Heathrow.
TfL Rail had originally planned to replace the Class 360 units with
Class 345s, but due to delays with the signalling system in the Heathrow Airport tunnels and late delivery of Class 345 units, a contingency plan was implemented. The Class 360s were used between London Paddington and Heathrow, supplemented by two Class 345 trains per hour running between London Paddington and the extended bay platform at Hayes & Harlington, until enough Class 345s were delivered. The Class 360s were fully replaced in September 2020.
[Heathrow 360s Retired '']Modern Railways
''Modern Railways'' is a British monthly magazine covering the rail transport industry which was published by Ian Allan until March 2012, and Key Publishing since then. It has been published since 1962. The magazine was originally based in She ...
'' issue 865 October 2020 page 85
For the eventual opening of the core of the Elizabeth line in May 2022, the service was given Elizabeth line branding and train paths were extended via the new tunnels at Paddington through Central London, calling at stations such as Bond Street, Liverpool Street and Canary Wharf. When the line opens fully, eastbound trains from Heathrow will terminate at
Shenfield
Shenfield is a commuter suburb of Brentwood, in the borough of Brentwood, Essex, England. In 2020, the suburb was estimated to have a population of 5,396.
History
The old village (now town), by the church and Green Dragon pub, lies along the ...
or
Abbey Wood
Abbey Wood is an area in south east London, England, straddling the border between the Royal Borough of Greenwich and the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross.
Toponymy
The area takes its name from Lesnes Abbey Woo ...
.
References
{{Airport rail links in the United Kingdom
Airport rail links in London
Defunct train operating companies
Railway operators in London
Transport in the London Borough of Ealing
Transport in the London Borough of Hillingdon
Railway services introduced in 2005
Railway services discontinued in 2018
Connect Heathrow Connect
2005 establishments in England
2018 disestablishments in England