Whilst the main effect of the Windsor Link Railway (WLR) will be felt by residents in local towns, the idea behind the railway is to serve the national as well as the local interest.
The map below shows how the WLR links with the rest of the rail network. Note how it links so many other main lines to and from London that currently have little or no interconnections. Thus, the WLR will relieve pressure on London, by providing new north-south strategic services, as well as cutting journey times.
See below for an explanation.
The red lines represent WLR Lines. The dotted yellow lines represent candidates for High Speed 2 (HS2) connections between London, Birmingham and the north of Britain.
Also illustrated is a potential HS2 branch directly to Heathrow. This shows how the WLR combined with this branch will greatly increase the catchment area for HS2 services. People from south of the Great Western Mail Line (going through Slough) will use the WLR and catch the HS2 going north at Heathrow. (Note this is different from the Heathrow Hub idea being promoted by Arup, as the Hub envisages a new station on green belt in Iver and then a second change to actually get to Heathrow, five miles away. Under the WLR proposal, passengers would have shorter transfer times.)
Another potential stop for HS2 is either at Milton Keynes or Bicester. In either case, the WLR would assist people in East Berkshire and the south to make use of the new high speed services.