Liverpool Street upgrade down the track? Designers behind Tate Modern plan £1.5bn revamp
Network Rail, MTR and Sellar have applied for permission to redevelop Liverpool Street station in its first upgrade since 1991.
The plans announced last month would see £450m is earmarked for station improvements as part of a £1.5bn proposal to transform the surrounding area.
This week the Liverpool Street redevelopment plans were submitted under a joint planning application to Canada Corporation.
The station concourse would more than double under the proposals, from 6,465 to 13,488 square metres, with the number of escalators increasing by 150 per cent to ten from the current four.
Liverpool Street has just half the concourse space of other major London stations despite being the UK’s busiest station by footfall, with 135 million visitors per annum in recent years.
Six news accessible lifts would also be installed. Just one accessible lift currently serves the mainline station and there is no step-free access to most London Underground platforms.
The plans also set out an additional 800,000 sq ft of offices and 160,000 sq ft of hotel space, with a rebuilt concourse offering new views of the old Victorian trainsheds.
The rebuilt station would have an open rooftop, complete with a four-lane lido, heated by the offices below, as well as a café and padel court.
Padel is a racket sport similar to tennis in which the ball can, however, be played off the wall.
Liverpool Street itself would be pedestrianised, with over 100 new trees planned as part of the project.
The station would remain open and operational throughout construction, according to the plans drawn up by architects Herzog & De Meuron; the Swiss based company converted Bankside Power Station in London to the new home of Tate Modern.
James Sellar, chief executive at Sellar, said: “The upgrades to Liverpool Street station are essential in helping London maintain its status as a world-class city and encourage people back to the capital.”
“Our entire approach prioritises protecting and enhancing the historic elements of both the Great Eastern Hotel and of the station itself. The original Victorian railway sheds at Liverpool Street station will not be touched but will be celebrated by opening up new views to and through them”, he added.
Canada Corporation is expected to decide on the plan in 2024.