Liverpool Street station plan ‘waste of resources’

The proposed redevelopment of Liverpool Street station is “a huge and unnecessary waste of resources” and is “likely to be redundant on completion”, conservationists have said.

Network Rail’s plans to partially demolish Britain’s busiest station and build a multi-storey tower cantilevered above a neighbouring Grade II* listed former hotel were criticised in a report commissioned by Liverpool Street Station Campaign (LISSCA).

The Victorian Society says the “environmentally backward” plan should be rejected by the City of London planning committee.

Network Rail said Liverpool Street “is long overdue the transformation it deserves” and the “current station can’t accommodate expected growth”.

The 22-page embodied carbon assessment states the proposal “shows minimal ambition or intention to meet current best practice in terms of low carbon construction, or the UK’s trajectory to net zero”.

Simon Sturgis’ report adds that “the submission demolishes useable fabric without examining retrofitting options”.

Revised redevelopment plans were submitted to the City of London Corporation in April following thousands of objections from the public, Westminster Council and Historic England.

The revised scheme features amendments including reducing the size of the office block above the station, realigning the building to avoid interfering with the site of the Great Eastern Hotel and redesigning station entrances.

James Hughes, director of the Victorian Society, said: “This report shines a stark and revealing light on one of the profound shortcomings of the Liverpool Street Station scheme.

“Network Rail claims that its scheme is environmentally exemplary. What this report demonstrates is that the scheme is anything but.”

A spokesperson for Network Rail said: “This investment in sustainable transport will allow the station to grow 30% from 115 million to 150 million passengers per annum while enhancing accessibility for all.

“The redevelopment of Liverpool Street makes a vast contribution to reducing the carbon footprint in London through the significant upgrade which will enable two billion additional passengers to undertake sustainable journeys over the next 60 years.”

The spokesperson added that the “vast majority of the existing station is being retained and refurbished” and the planning application “is designed to emit no carbon in use, and use low carbon materiality in construction”.