Network Rail in £130m Abbey Wood Crossrail deal with Balfour Beatty

A £130 million contract has been signed by Network Rail with Balfour Beatty contractors for a two-mile section of Crossrail, completing the east London branch from Whitechapel and Canary Wharf to Abbey Wood opening in 2018.

It involves widening existing railway bridges between Plumstead and Abbey Wood to include new tracks carrying 12 trains an hour in each direction and adding overhead cables. Journey times from Canary Wharf to Abbey Wood will take just 11 minutes.