When it opens, the Elizabeth line will not just substantially increase capacity on the tube network in Central London, for many people, it will make journeys a lot faster. In some cases, considerably faster, especially in southeast London.

We now have the expected times for journeys along the line between Abbey Wood and Paddington, which will be the first part of the core tunnels to open in just a few weeks’ time, and they confirm that for a lot of people, journey times across London is about to shrink.

It’s not just people who ride on the Lizzie line who will benefit though. For example, people arriving at Waterloo on the mainline trains heading to Canary Wharf on the Jubilee line can often have to wait for a couple of trains to pass before they are able to edge to the front of the crowd and squeeze onto a train. However, when Bond Street opens later this year, it’s been previously suggested that as much as a quarter of the Jubilee line passengers coming from North London will switch to the Elizabeth line, meaning less crowded trains at Waterloo, and so less time waiting to catch a Jubilee line train.

But, back to the Elizabeth line for those lucky enough to be riding on those trains in a few weeks’ time…

The times provided for the Elizabeth line are platform to platform, so I’ve adjusted the current TfL time calculations accordingly. Note that the current journey times are slightly variable from the numbers given because of how often people need to change trains or buses along the route – I’ve taken a reasonable average, but naturally, your personal trip may be slightly different.

At the moment, this is just for the Abbey Wood to Paddington services, as the timetable for the later phases of opening the line will be released closer to the time.

And spot the one trip where the Lizzie line will not save you any time on your journey.

If you’re heading east to west…

From Abbey Wood

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Woolwich 6 mins* 3 mins
Custom House 41 mins 7 mins
Canary Wharf 30 mins 11 min
Whitechapel 49 mins 15 mins
Liverpool Street 45 mins 18 mins
Farringdon 40 mins 21 mins
Tottenham Court Road 46 mins 24 mins
Bond Street 42 mins 26 mins
Paddington 55 mins 29 mins

*Abbey Wood to Woolwich Arsenal station

From Woolwich

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Custom House 25 mins 4 mins
Canary Wharf 17 mins 8 mins
Whitechapel 28 mins 12 mins
Liverpool Street 32 mins 15 mins
Farringdon 35 mins 18 mins
Tottenham Court Road 38 mins 21 mins
Bond Street 35 mins 23 mins
Paddington 40 mins 26 mins

From Custom House

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Canary Wharf 10 mins 4 mins
Whitechapel 20 mins 8 mins
Liverpool Street 23 mins 11 mins
Farringdon 34 mins 14 mins
Tottenham Court Road 31 mins 17 mins
Bond Street 25 mins 19 mins
Paddington 35 mins 22 mins

From Canary Wharf

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Whitechapel 12 mins 4 mins
Liverpool Street 19 mins 7 mins
Farringdon 24 mins 10 mins
Tottenham Court Road 22 mins 13 mins
Bond Street 15 mins 15 mins
Paddington 22 mins 18 mins

From Whitechapel

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Liverpool Street 6 mins 3 mins
Farringdon 11 mins 6 mins
Tottenham Court Road 20 mins 9 mins
Bond Street 22 mins 11 mins
Paddington 26 mins 14 mins

From Liverpool Street

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Farringdon 5 mins 3 mins
Tottenham Court Road 8 mins 6 mins
Bond Street 10 mins 8 mins
Paddington 20 mins 11 mins

From Farringdon

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Tottenham Court Road 16 mins 3 mins
Bond Street 20 mins 5 mins
Paddington 14 mins 8 mins

From Tottenham Court Road

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Bond Street 3 mins 2 mins
Paddington 11 mins 5 mins

From Bond Street

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Paddington 9 mins 3 mins

If you’re heading west to east

From Paddington

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Bond Street 9 mins 3 mins
Tottenham Court Road 11 mins 5 mins
Farringdon 14 mins 8 mins
Liverpool Street 20 mins 11 mins
Whitechapel 26 mins 14 mins
Canary Wharf 22 mins 18 mins
Custom House 35 mins 22 mins
Woolwich 40 mins 26 mins
Abbey Wood 55 mins 29 mins

From Bond Street

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Tottenham Court Road 3 mins 2 mins
Farringdon 20 mins 5 mins
Liverpool Street 10 mins 8 mins
Whitechapel 22 mins 11 mins
Canary Wharf 15 mins 15 mins
Custom House 25 mins 19 mins
Woolwich 35 mins 23 mins
Abbey Wood 42 mins 26 mins

From Tottenham Court Road

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Farringdon 16 mins 3 mins
Liverpool Street 8 mins 6 mins
Whitechapel 20 mins 9 mins
Canary Wharf 22 mins 13 mins
Custom House 31 mins 17 mins
Woolwich 38 mins 21 mins
Abbey Wood 46 mins 24 mins

From Farringdon

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Liverpool Street 5 mins 3 mins
Whitechapel 11 mins 6 mins
Canary Wharf 24 mins 10 mins
Custom House 34 mins 14 mins
Woolwich 35 mins 18 mins
Abbey Wood 40 mins 21 mins

From Liverpool Street

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Whitechapel 6 mins 3 mins
Canary Wharf 19 mins 7 mins
Custom House 23 mins 11 mins
Woolwich 32 mins 15 mins
Abbey Wood 45 mins 18 mins

From Whitechapel

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Canary Wharf 12 mins 4 mins
Custom House 20 mins 8 mins
Woolwich 28 mins 12 mins
Abbey Wood 49 mins 15 mins

From Canary Wharf

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Custom House 10 mins 4 mins
Woolwich 17 mins 8 mins
Abbey Wood 30 mins 11 min

From Custom House

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Woolwich 25 mins 4 mins
Abbey Wood 41 mins 7 mins

From Woolwich

To Journey Times
Current Elizabeth line
Abbey Wood 6 mins* 3 mins

*from Woolwich Arsenal station

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32 comments
  1. Basil Jet says:
    18 April 2022 at 3:17 pm

    Bond Street to Canary Wharf by the Liz has four intermediate stops, whereas the Jubbly has seven intermediate stops, and the distances are about 10km either way, so it’s hard to believe that the Liz would take as long as the Jubbly, unless the door mechanisms are significantly slower on the Liz!

    • Ivan says:
      18 April 2022 at 11:17 pm

      That would depend on which Canary Wharf Station was used for the timing. 😉

    • Zoli says:
      19 April 2022 at 6:46 am

      It is about prices.
      Will the Paddington to Reading part be part of tfl? And the prices will drop accordingly?
      May I shall be using the over 60 card?

  2. Paul says:
    18 April 2022 at 5:24 pm

    Those current journey times from Woolwich seem highly unlikely to me; 40 mins to Paddington? The best I can get from CityMapper is 52 mins via the DLR and Canning Town. The direct train between Woolwich Arsenal and Charing Cross alone takes 35 mins.

    • ianVisits says:
      18 April 2022 at 6:00 pm

      Try using a more accurate travel app 😉

      DLR to Canning Town – 13 min

      Jubilee line to Baker Street – 21 min

      Baker Street to Paddington – 4 min

    • Paul says:
      21 April 2022 at 1:15 pm

      Is the “more accurate” app the one that gives you a realistic start platform to end platform time, or the one that gives you the lowest number?
      (Asking for a friend waiting to get on the down escalator at Canning Town)

    • ianVisits says:
      21 April 2022 at 1:36 pm

      It’s the one that doesn’t tell you to take a much slower route that the much quicker ones that are available.

      And yes, I did state in the article that I averaged out the numbers, so no I didn’t go for the lowest number, knowing that someone, probably called Paul, would feel compelled to go “ah-ha, I’ve found a mistake!”, and yes, I did include the average interchange times in the journeys.

  3. Jaysus says:
    18 April 2022 at 6:23 pm

    “The times provided for the Elizabeth line are platform to platform, so I’ve adjusted the current TfL time calculations accordingly.”

    So the times above are from gate to gate?

  4. Brian Butterworth says:
    18 April 2022 at 7:03 pm

    Looks at the 2018 figures.. https://ukfree.tv/styles/images/2018/Elizabeth-timings.png

    These usefully show the travel AND stop (dwell) times.

    It interesting that the to-buffers sections have an extra minute (because by law the trains have to come to a full stop before approaching the buffers)

  5. Imran Sohail says:
    19 April 2022 at 12:01 am

    Tottenham Court Road to Paddington currently states 11min! If that was the case I wouldn’t need Elizabeth Line as that’s unbelievable!

    • Paul says:
      21 April 2022 at 2:31 pm

      Start platform to end platform it’s not unreasonable IMO, you’re talking about 2 mins to Oxford Circus and 8 mins to Paddington with a minute to change.

  6. James says:
    19 April 2022 at 10:44 am

    Could you do to and from Stratford?

    • Roger Hall says:
      19 April 2022 at 11:05 am

      There are no direct trains from Stratford beyond L.St until Autumn 2022. You must change at L.St to the low level station until then.

  7. Sean says:
    19 April 2022 at 5:38 pm

    So it opens ‘in a few weeks’. What’s the opening date please?

    • ianVisits says:
      19 April 2022 at 5:50 pm

      The opening date has been the same since last year – “As soon as possible in the first half of 2022”

  8. Sean says:
    19 April 2022 at 7:53 pm

    So basically, saying ‘a few weeks’ is completely untrue. We are still in April, if you haven’t noticed. Please correct your copy

    • ianVisits says:
      19 April 2022 at 9:05 pm

      The end of June (the latest possible date) is just a few weeks away. What I wrote is not untrue.

  9. Finlay says:
    19 April 2022 at 8:59 pm

    Will the fares be the same as the tube in each Zone that Elizabeth line between Paddington and Abbey Wood will run through?

  10. ChrisC says:
    20 April 2022 at 2:56 pm

    What’s the situation like at Paddington and changing from the terminating crossrail service platforms up to the main station to catch the rail services to LHR?

    All step free for people with luggage etc or will it be an awful trek?

    • ianVisits says:
      20 April 2022 at 3:07 pm

      It’s a brand new station – you can’t build brand new things without making them fully accessible.

  11. Ciara says:
    21 April 2022 at 9:23 pm

    I can’t wait for this! It will be such a benefit. Any idea when the direct line will be from west Drayton to Farringdon and how long it will take? I read that it was 29 minutes which is a massive improvement to my current commute and hassle of at least two trains!! More updates on this please! It’s been long awaited! Thanks!

  12. Lukas says:
    22 April 2022 at 11:58 am

    What is the journey time between Canary Wharf DLR or Canary Wharf Jubilee to the new Elizabeth line station?

    Currently I go from Canning Town to Stratford then to Liverpool street, would this make it quicker for me to go Canning Town to Canary Wharf then Liverpool Street? My gut says no but maybe i’m overestimating the change time

  13. Ramon Prasad says:
    24 April 2022 at 10:12 am

    Apart from doing central line type journeys crossrail will not change much. People doing central line type journeys will suddenly find themselves in a gigantic empty space railway, on trains, in stations, and endless walking to get out of the system.

    The central line eyeball to eyeball experience may have worn a bit thin so this will be lovely for them. But what about everybody else, not having a whole line replicated for them.

    Well I can give everybody else the news they have all been waiting for. What has just been done for central line travellers will be done for them NEVER. Just as well really, because the cost of doing it for cental liners has bankrupted us. (“You lucky people”)

    • ianVisits says:
      24 April 2022 at 10:42 am

      So people on the Bakerloo line won’t benefit from people no longer crushing onto trains at Paddington?

      So people squashed on the Jubilee line won’t benefit from the Lizzie line soaking up loads of passengers heading to/from Canary Wharf? Likewise the DLR and London Overground at Shadwell?

      So people who use the Met/Circle/H&S lines along the Paddington to Liverpool Street line won’t benefit?

      So people living out on the mainline branches don’t benefit from better longer more frequent trains?

      So people living in Woolwich who use the DLR won’t benefit from getting a seat for the first time in years?

      So people in Abbey Wood wont benefit from vastly quicker journeys into central London?

    • John says:
      25 April 2022 at 5:27 pm

      I am really sorry that there are people in the world as stupid as Ramon Prasad.

      Literally 3 out of the 10 stops on the central section of the Elizabeth line are also on the Central line. The Elizabeth line with relieve pressure in the central tunnels on practically every other Underground line (perhaps with exceptions of Piccadilly and Victoria) as well as on National Rail services (Southeastern, Thameslink and C2C)

      And what even does “bankrupted us” mean? It “cost” £18billion or so. At least 30% of that will go straight back into the Treasury in taxes on profits and income. The rest will be divided between the workers (you know those people who have to pay their bills), and of course fat profits for the builders, but that’s just par for the course. The construction cost is fully financed by sustainable government borrowing backed by the taxes on the beneficiaries and fare income.

      If schemes that would directly benefit those in other parts of the South-East, such as Crossrail 2 or 3 (BML2) are scrapped despite being affordable and sensible, that is really not the fault of the “central line travellers”

  14. Kevan says:
    13 May 2022 at 10:12 am

    Hello Ian,
    I come in on the c2c from Upminster and am building an idea of getting from here to Canary wharf via a quick change at Limehouse, which is just two stops from Canary wharf on the DLR towards Lewisham, then a shortish walk to the Elizabeth line.
    But I have also heard that Bond street is not to open yet on the Elizabeth line, and also that parts of the extension onwards to Heathrow are at a premium?
    Information is still vague…
    Thanks.
    Kevan

    • ianVisits says:
      13 May 2022 at 2:19 pm

      It has been widely reported on here and elsewhere that Bond Street will open later this year.

      There are no plans to charge a premium for journeys to Heathrow.

  15. Kevan says:
    14 May 2022 at 12:04 am

    Hello Ian,
    Thanks. From Limehouse, accessible options are:
    Two stations to Canary wharf, and walk through the shops to the Elizabeth line (or Jubilee). Ok if you can walk.
    15 minutes on the DLR towards Beckton, to Custom House Excel, from Limehouse. No steps, lifts etc. Brilliant route in a wheelchair, or if yiu struggle to walk.
    Shadwell, one stop from Limehouse, on the overground, having a lift down towards platforms, and then steps to the actual platform. Totally inaccessible.
    It all depends how accessibly friendly you need to be.
    Kevan

  16. Margaret says:
    13 June 2022 at 6:30 pm

    Hi, I’m looking to travel between Brentwood and Custom House, It would be great to eventually be able to do this without many changes which I currently have on the jubilee and DLR, will I eventially be able to take the Elizabeth line to Farringdon and do a quick hop over platforms to then continue on the Elizabeth line in the direction to Custom House? Mobility issues mean the easier journey for me is better even if it takes a little longer compared to switching and walking much

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