Network Rail is holding a series of local exhibitions this month as it undertakes initial public consultation for the new route that would enable services from the west of England to run directly from the Great Western Main Line to Terminal 5 at Heathrow Airport. A second phase of consultation is expected this summer, ahead of submitting an application for consent to the Planning Inspectorate in early 2016. The line would leave the GWML at a new junction between Langley and lver stations, running for 250 m on the surface before entering a 5 km twin-bore tunnel to Terminal 5. The tunnel would be between 10 m and 30 m below the surface, with a diameter 'in the region of 6 m to 7 m'. NR says that there would be sufficient capacity to operate four trains/h from Reading to Heathrow via Slough, with alternate services calling at Twyford and Maidenhead. With work starting in 'spring/summer 2017', the western link would enter service at the end of 2021.
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