A contractor has been appointed to build the overground extension to Barking Riverside.
Morgan Sindall Construction and Infrastructure and VolkerFitzpatrick (MSVF) won the bid, which will see a 4.5km extension of the Gospel Oak to Barking line.
Preparation work will start immediately, with main construction starting in 2019 and trains starting from late 2021.
The extension is a key part of the Barking Riverside development, a 180-hectare site on the north of the Thames with 10,800 homes.
The service will have four electric trains running in each direction every hour.
Leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, Darren Rodwell, said: “This is great news. The extension is vital to the development of Barking Riverside and realising the potential of the whole area.”
Morgan Sindall’s Simon Smith said: ““We have a strong history of delivering rail improvement projects of this scale and complexity and are looking forward to starting on site in order to ensure good transport links to serve this expanding community.”
This follows news that the introduction of a new fleet of electric trains on the line would be pushed back once again, after the extended deadline of November was missed.
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