Liverpool Street revamp hits fresh delay as details are added

Plans for the London Liverpool Street station redevelopment have been put back again as Network Rail submits fresh material to the planning register – marking a further postponement in the long-running station overhaul. The Liverpool Street redevelopment moves into another phase of amendment as the applicant adds detail ahead of a decision by City of London Corporation.

The station’s transformation proposal, which includes a multistorey tower above the listed former hotel and partial demolition of station buildings, was originally expected to be decided by the end of the year. But that timetable has slipped following the submission of additional documentation. A Network Rail spokesperson said the body remains “committed” to the scheme.

Conservation groups have been vocal in their opposition. The Victorian Society described the plans as “a huge and unnecessary waste of resources” previously, arguing the station may become “redundant on completion.” Meanwhile Historic England, once firmly opposed, has softened its stance, acknowledging the revised scheme as a “significant improvement” despite its assessment of “high level of harm.”

The original concept, filed in May 2023, drew more than 2,000 objections from the public, the London borough of Westminster and heritage bodies. The revised scheme, submitted in April this year, reduces the height of the office tower to 19 storeys, realigns the building so as not to interfere with the adjacent Andaz London Liverpool Street hotel (which lies in a Grade II*-listed building) and redesigns station entrances.

Network Rail says the additional submission includes further transport analysis following engagement with Transport for London and the City of London highways team. The aim, according to Network Rail’s official improvement plans, is to make the station fit for future demand and enhance accessibility, retail and public-realm space.

For commuters and City workers, the stakes are high. The station currently handles more than 118 million passengers annually, a figure forecast to rise in the coming decades. The redevelopment is intended to ease congestion, improve step-free access, expand concourse space and modernise facilities.

Nevertheless, critics maintain that the scale of the project remains problematic. “The campaign to prevent the hugely damaging proposals for the redevelopment of Liverpool Street Station is not rooted in a fundamental opposition to change,” one argument reads, “but rather in a refusal to accept a false choice: that we must either accept what is proposed or accept no improvement at all.”

For now, the delay means the decision-making process drags on, prolonging uncertainty for local businesses, heritage bodies and commuters alike.

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