The future of London: New 3D model allows you to see how the capital will change over time
The future of London's skyline lies in the hands of its architects, and there are plenty of exciting plans on the horizon. So what will the capital look in two years, five years, or even 20 years?
To answer these questions, a huge interactive installation has been opened at the Building Centre near Goodge Street. The table-top model city was created using 3D-printing, so visitors can choose to go backwards and forwards in time to see how the City has, and will, change.
Called the New London Model, it is 12.5m in length and was built by Pipers using data from the Ordnance Survey. At a scale of 1:2,000, it includes 170,000 buildings across 19 boroughs.
The model covers 19 boroughs (Source: Paul Raftery)
Extending from King's Cross in the north to Peckham in the south, and from the Royal Docks in the east to Old Oak Common in the west, a total of 85 square kilometres are covered. As well as looking at buildings, visitors will be able to track the routes and impacts of new transport links such as HS2 and Crossrail.
The digital display system is integrated with film and touch screens, so if a building has not been built yet or is currently under construction, users can still see what it will look like. The system will be updated twice a year to ensure the latest projects are included.
These 263 buildings-of-the future will be scattered among their already-built neighbours, which have been created by hand.
Visitors will be able to go both backwards and forwards in time (Source: Paul Raftery)