Latest news with #LiverpoolStreetStation
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
This disastrous development could threaten every great building in Britain
Not for the first time, I find myself thinking about London's Liverpool Street station, a great Victorian building that Network Rail seeks to destroy by putting a horrible skyscraper over the top of its concourse. The City of London's planning authorities have already vetoed one unsuitable idea; now a less radical, but still aesthetically destructive, blueprint by the architectural practice Acme has been prepared, and has passed the first hurdle with the City's planners. Largely because the leader of the campaign to save the station is Griff Rhys Jones, the celebrated comedian – and he is leading it superbly – some in the media have been keen to describe what is going on as a battle between him and a rapacious developer: a prism further distorted recently by the fact that the developers have hired a lobbying company run by a former adviser to Boris Johnson. Given how ignominiously Johnson ended up, one might have thought they would have looked elsewhere; and it has been found that the lobbyist has resorted to using employees of the developer's architect to write on social media in support of the project. It is patently very hard to find members of the public who wish to profess their admiration for the swamping of this fine Victorian building by a vast skyscraper. The station is perfectly all right as it is – I use it two or three times a week for return journeys from Essex – and this proposal is mainly about the exploitation of real estate. The Eastern counties are becoming more populous and the station may well need more capacity; how this is achieved by putting a skyscraper over it is beyond most people. In fact, the real issue about Liverpool Street is that if the latest plan were to go ahead, it could put every great building in the country at risk. The Victorian edifice and train shed at the station are Grade II listed: if a skyscraper is allowed to be built over the concourse between them, then what does that say about the protection of the country's architectural heritage? We are taken back to the relentless decision in 1961 to destroy the Euston Arch, and to an era in which little value was placed on fine 19th-century buildings. Network Rail is preening itself about the contention that its new proposals do not impinge on the Victorian building. But what is now proposed would violate the environment of these great buildings, and it should be rejected to preserve the City's character. You wouldn't stick a skyscraper over the top of a fine Grade II-listed church or fine house, so why is it all right to stick one over Liverpool Street? We as a people have become enormously protective of our architecture, perhaps in response to the ruthless and ignorant demolition of fine 18th- and 19th-century buildings in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The listing process was meant to put a stop to that. More than 2,000 people and almost every relevant heritage body in the country objected to the last plan, and it was discarded. This new plan is in some respects worse than the first, because of some of its intrinsic silliness – i.e. its pastiche entrance arches. And one can intuit all one needs to know about it in a remark by a Network Rail official that the proposed development would create an 'accessible and inclusive space', whatever that means. The logic of proceeding with these plans for Liverpool Street is that the City's planners allow such skyscrapers over and around every fine listed building in the Square Mile. A few minutes away on the Elizabeth Line is Canary Wharf, with so much free office space that some of it is being converted into flats. They want to build new retail space at Liverpool Street when all over the West End shops are empty. The increase in working from home and the ubiquity of online shopping have rendered plans such as Network Rail's utterly superfluous. The City authorities should reject it accordingly.
BBC News
21-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Liverpool Street station plan a financial 'gamble', opponents say
The redesign of London's Liverpool Street station has been described by opponents as a "billion pound gamble" after a report raised doubts over its financial review found the planned scheme was not currently profitable due to the expected costs of revamping the Victorian site compared with the income it would the plan was close to becoming viable due to a likely upturn in economic Victorian Society said relying on an economic boost was "remarkably cavalier and not in the public interest". Network Rail said it was confident the project could progress and that it would generate "hundreds of millions of pounds". The firm said the project aimed to future-proof the station for the 200 million passengers using it each original redevelopment proposals were scaled back due to strong opposition. But a new office block above the station is still planned, as well as new entrances, concourses and some external recent viability assessment, by real estate services firm JLL, was prepared as part of the planning application and weighed up costs against rental values for the concluded the project was not "technically viable" - meaning it would not be profitable based on current growth it said the local office rental market was "cyclical", and was likely to be buoyed if the local authority approved the scheme, according to the Local Democracy Reporting also said "relatively few further efficiencies or market improvement" were needed in order for the plans to become financially sound. The Victorian Society's director James Hughes said: "This is one of the country's most important and impressive historic railway stations, as well as one of its busiest. It should not be a token in a billion-pound gamble."The report itself concludes that the works proposed would not fund the works to the station, only a part of them, unless favourable market conditions emerge," he said.A spokesperson for Network Rail: "Our plan will tackle congestion, improve accessibility and enhance the customer is an operationally led scheme that will generate hundreds of millions of pounds."Although the City property market is cyclical, there is a rising demand for landmark office space."We are confident in being able to bring this scheme forward and working with future partners means the scheme can be delivered at no cost to the customers or the taxpayer."
The Independent
21-05-2025
- The Independent
Wheelchair user misses train and branded ‘rude' by station staff after they refused to get ramp
A wheelchair user missed her train when staff refused to assist her with a ramp and called her 'rude' after she complained. Anna Landre, 26, had planned to travel to Cambridge from London Liverpool Street on Sunday, but was forced to cancel her plans when station staff were 'too busy' to help her on the train. She arrived at the station 15 minutes before her train was set to leave at 11am and went to the information desk to let them know which train she was getting and that she would need a ramp. 'Some stations are excellent, and you can arrive like any other non-disabled person five minutes before the train and they're happy, whereas others look at you and say, no, you're not here 30 minutes before, and won't even try,' the PhD student told the Independent. It got to five minutes before her train was scheduled to leave, and she was told the staff were 'really busy' and would not be able to help her. Ms Landre remained hopeful that platform or onboard staff would be able to help. However, she was told they did not have any ramp keys and could not assist her. When a member of staff from Liverpool Street Station eventually arrived to help her, it was too late and she missed the train. Frustrated, but still hopeful she could get the next train in 30 minutes, Ms Landre went back to the desk to request assistance again. Passengers with a disability can book assistance before they travel – like buying a ticket in advance, but this fails around a quarter of the time, Caroline Stickland, CEO of Transport for All explained. An alternative is 'Turn Up and Go', which allows people to simply arrive at the station and ask for assistance. 'Turn Up and Go can be piecemeal. Only 11 per cent of stations are staffed all the time, which can make turning up and going quite challenging,' Ms Stickland added. A few minutes after Ms Landre missed her train, a member of staff came over to ask if she had pre-booked assistance. 'I explained that I have the right to turn up and go, but he kept explaining that they were very busy and have to help people who are booked first,' Ms Landre said. 'I told him, I know my rights. I know the law. I don't need a lecture on it. He just kept going and I said it again. I'm just waiting for the next train, and he really didn't like that and said I was rude, and he would not help me.' The member of staff went to his manager, who then told Ms Landre she understood she was rude to a member of staff and was frustrated. Although Ms Landre agreed that she was frustrated for missing a train, she did not believe she was rude. Minutes later another manager stepped in with two security guards and Ms Landre claims she was told they would not be providing assistance to her, leaving Ms Landre no option but to cancel her plans and go home. A Network Rail spokesperson said: 'We are really sorry that Ms Landre had this experience when using our station. 'Our director for the Anglia region, which includes responsibility for Liverpool Street station, spoke with Ms Landre this morning and personally apologised for her experience. 'Our aim is to provide a positive experience for each and every passenger and she should never have been denied assistance to board a train and we know we let her down.' Network Rail will now be launching an investigation into what went wrong but for Ms Landre, the ordeal has left her feeling anxious to travel. 'I think for most wheelchair users traveling is very anxiety-inducing because the system fails us so frequently. Then we're painted as the irrational, anxious or unreasonable ones for reacting in a very rational way,' she said. Ms Landre explained she avoids taking trains to work or university because the 'Turn Up and Go' system is 'unreliable'. 'It's such an overlying just burden and cloud over a life that is already challenging because of the additional logistics necessary to live in an inaccessible world,' she said. Ms Stickland said: 'We all want the freedom to travel when we need to, but disabled people are often blocked from that by inaccessible stations and information. 'We hear about horrific experiences like Anna's every single day, but they are not recorded anywhere official. 'Companies have targets around leaves on the line or how many minutes late trains are, but nobody's measuring how often disabled people are stranded - we are erased from the data.'
