The Elizabeth line has had its busiest month yet, after it carried over 17 million passengers journeys in a 28-day period for the first time.
Between 17th Sept and 14th Oct, the line carried 17.3 million passengers journeys, a rise on the roughly 15.5 million over the previous two months, when several problems had also hit the line.
Travel in general was up across the board, with a slight decrease in trams, but all other TfL services reported rises over the previous month. At just under 291 million passenger journeys, it was the busiest month for TfL since the pandemic hit, although still down on the average of 320 million passenger journeys in the same reporting period prior to the pandemic.
Previous three months:
| 28 days starting… | 23-Jul-23 | 20-Aug-23 | 17-Sep-23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bus journeys (m) | 129.7 | 139.6 | 155.4 |
| Underground journeys (m) | 86.6 | 83.7 | 93.4 |
| DLR Journeys (m) | 7.2 | 7.3 | 8.3 |
| Tram Journeys (m) | 1.4 | 1.7 | 1.6 |
| Overground Journeys (m) | 12.4 | 13.8 | 14.8 |
| London Cable Car Journeys (m) | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Elizabeth line (m) | 15.4 | 15.6 | 17.3 |
The Elizabeth line may break the current charts in the next report, as that will include the period when the DLR was closed for two days due to strikes, which saw a lot more people in east London switching to the Elizabeth line. It was already going to be busy due to a major trade show at ExCel, but the DLR strike saw trains in the rush hours exceptionally busy.
Elizabeth line performance
| 28 days from… | Passengers (m) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 31-May-15 | 3.6 | TfL rail starts |
| 28-Jun-15 | 3.8 | |
| 26-Jul-15 | 3.7 | |
| 23-Aug-15 | 3.7 | |
| 20-Sep-15 | 4.1 | |
| 18-Oct-15 | 4.2 | |
| 15-Nov-15 | 4.2 | |
| 13-Dec-15 | 3.0 | |
| 10-Jan-16 | 3.8 | |
| 07-Feb-16 | 3.2 | |
| 06-Mar-16 | 2.8 | |
| 01-Apr-16 | 4.0 | |
| 01-May-16 | 3.7 | |
| 29-May-16 | 3.5 | |
| 26-Jun-16 | 3.8 | |
| 24-Jul-16 | 3.6 | |
| 21-Aug-16 | 3.5 | |
| 18-Sep-16 | 3.7 | |
| 16-Oct-16 | 3.8 | |
| 13-Nov-16 | 4.0 | |
| 11-Dec-16 | 3.3 | |
| 08-Jan-17 | 3.8 | |
| 05-Feb-17 | 3.6 | |
| 05-Mar-17 | 3.4 | |
| 01-Apr-17 | 3.3 | |
| 30-Apr-17 | 3.5 | |
| 28-May-17 | 3.4 | |
| 25-Jun-17 | 3.7 | |
| 23-Jul-17 | 3.5 | |
| 20-Aug-17 | 3.3 | |
| 17-Sep-17 | 3.8 | |
| 15-Oct-17 | 3.7 | |
| 12-Nov-17 | 3.9 | |
| 10-Dec-17 | 2.9 | |
| 07-Jan-18 | 3.7 | |
| 04-Feb-18 | 3.4 | |
| 04-Mar-18 | 3.3 | |
| 01-Apr-18 | 3.5 | |
| 29-Apr-18 | 3.7 | TfL Rail takes over Heathrow Connect |
| 27-May-18 | 4.2 | |
| 24-Jun-18 | 4.5 | |
| 22-Jul-18 | 4.1 | |
| 19-Aug-18 | 4.1 | |
| 16-Sep-18 | 4.7 | |
| 14-Oct-18 | 4.7 | |
| 11-Nov-18 | 4.6 | |
| 09-Dec-18 | 3.9 | |
| 06-Jan-19 | 4.6 | |
| 03-Feb-19 | 4.4 | |
| 03-Mar-19 | 4.3 | |
| 01-Apr-19 | 4.3 | |
| 28-Apr-19 | 4.5 | |
| 26-May-19 | 4.4 | |
| 23-Jun-19 | 4.6 | |
| 21-Jul-19 | 4.3 | |
| 18-Aug-19 | 4.3 | |
| 15-Sep-19 | 4.9 | |
| 13-Oct-19 | 4.9 | |
| 10-Nov-19 | 5.0 | |
| 08-Dec-19 | 4.3 | Most GWR stopping services west of London transferred to TfL Rail |
| 05-Jan-20 | 5.7 | |
| 02-Feb-20 | 5.2 | |
| 01-Mar-20 | 3.5 | |
| 01-Apr-20 | 0.6 | Pandemic lockdown starts |
| 03-May-20 | 0.7 | |
| 31-May-20 | 1.2 | |
| 28-Jun-20 | 1.6 | |
| 26-Jul-20 | 2.0 | Class 345 trains start running between Paddington and Heathrow |
| 23-Aug-20 | 2.2 | |
| 20-Sep-20 | 2.5 | |
| 18-Oct-20 | 2.1 | |
| 15-Nov-20 | 2.1 | |
| 13-Dec-20 | 1.2 | |
| 10-Jan-21 | 1.2 | |
| 07-Feb-21 | 1.4 | |
| 07-Mar-21 | 1.5 | |
| 01-Apr-21 | 2.1 | |
| 02-May-21 | 2.3 | Class 345 trains in full-length formation start running between Liverpool Street and Shenfield |
| 30-May-21 | 2.7 | |
| 27-Jun-21 | 2.8 | |
| 25-Jul-21 | 2.8 | |
| 22-Aug-21 | 3.1 | |
| 19-Sep-21 | 3.7 | |
| 17-Oct-21 | 3.7 | |
| 14-Nov-21 | 3.3 | |
| 12-Dec-21 | 2.4 | |
| 09-Jan-22 | 3.2 | |
| 06-Feb-22 | 3.1 | |
| 06-Mar-22 | 3.1 | |
| 01-Apr-22 | 4.4 | |
| 01-May-22 | 5.5 | Elizabeth line opens |
| 29-May-22 | 8.1 | |
| 26-Jun-22 | 11.6 | |
| 24-Jul-22 | 9.2 | |
| 21-Aug-22 | 9.8 | |
| 18-Sep-22 | 11.0 | |
| 16-Oct-22 | 12.5 | Elizabeth line service increased with through running, and Bond Street station opens. |
| 13-Nov-22 | 15.2 | |
| 11-Dec-22 | 8.9 | |
| 08-Jan-23 | 13.4 | |
| 05-Feb-23 | 14.0 | |
| 05-Mar-23 | 14.0 | |
| 01-Apr-23 | 14.2 | |
| 30-Apr-23 | 15.1 | Elizabeth line was completed. |
| 28-May-23 | 16.0 | |
| 25-Jun-23 | 16.7 | |
| 23-Jul-23 | 15.4 | |
| 20-Aug-23 | 15.6 | |
| 17-Sep-23 | 17.3 |
Updated 24th Nov – Clarified that it’s passenger journeys, not passengers.
What is shocking is the Overground. The entire network carries fewer passengers than the Elisabeth line. I am curious, is it considered a success?
Why is it shocking?
It serves an entirely different population than Lizzie so direct comparisons aren’t really relavant.
Would you say Lizzie was a failure because it only managed 17m journies compared to 93m for the underground?
Tfl Rail took over Heathrow Connect in May 2018, rather than May 2017. This corresponds with the increase in passenger numbers on the Elizabeth Line performance chart from that date (May 2018).
I hope that the Elizabeth line starts running all night or very early in the mornings to cater for passengers travelling catching a flight very early in the morning.