Belfast Grand Central Station
Belfast Grand Central Station
Cities around the world are facing increasing pressures, and must adapt in order to thrive. They need to accommodate growth, and recharge areas that have experienced decline. They need responses to economic competition, and to change long-established patterns of behaviour to combat climate change.
Transport-led development offers answers to many of these challenges. It not only facilitates mobility – on which productivity depends – but can support regeneration, attract investment and contribute to net-zero goals and healthier places. Infrastructure shaped the cities we have today, and it has a unique capacity to spearhead an urban renaissance.
Bond Street Station, London
The Elizabeth Line in London exemplifies the potential of transport infrastructure to inspire civic pride and catalyse urban renewal. The cross-city route opened in 2022 and now accounts for one-sixth of all rail journeys in the UK. Its popularity – and the enormous benefits that flow from it – reflect both efficient operation and design that makes journeys easy and enjoyable, from the street to your seat.
Our design for Bond Street – one of the line’s central stations – sets a benchmark in public transport architecture. Spacious, well-lit concourses with clear wayfinding and intuitive navigation not only improve safety and accessibility but also make public transport more appealing, encouraging the shift away from private vehicles. Crucially, landscaped public space conceived as part of an integrated development has transformed the surrounding area, making it more inviting and inclusive.
King's Cross Station, London
Likewise, our earlier redevelopment of King’s Cross Station set the stage for the comprehensive transformation of the surrounding area, shifting the city’s centre of gravity. Former rail lands are now a walkable neighbourhood, with 41,000 people living, working or studying in its characterful buildings. The terminus itself exemplifies the modern ‘destination station’, with a new public piazza and retail uses in the welcoming Western Concourse that make it a place to gather as well as the starting point for journeys. Stations are no longer simple transit nodes, but multifunctional hubs integrating travel, leisure and commerce to drive revitalisation beyond their physical boundaries.
Recent experience in Sydney offers another compelling example. The recently inaugurated Metro City & Southwest Line has remapped the city’s geography, connecting once-remote neighbourhoods and opening up new areas for residential and commercial growth. Commuters report a profound shift in how they perceive and use the city. Waterloo station is a new stop on the line which has activated the redevelopment of surrounding government-owned land, balancing private residential development with public and affordable housing. Integrating public art and. local community engagement from the outset, our design for the station reflects both the history of the area and its evolving identity. Architecture ties transport-led change to a vision of the city that recognises the importance of every resident.
Waterloo Station, Sydney
Our experience in infrastructure-led regeneration shows that several things are critical for success: high on the list are consistent vision, community buy-in and a wide perspective that extends beyond the station itself.
Involving local communities has greatly enhanced projects like Belfast’s Grand Central Station. As the largest integrated transport hub on the island of Ireland, its primary role is to strengthen connections within the city and beyond. Critically, it sits at the heart of a residential-led development that will regenerate nine hectares of former railway land. Working with stakeholders to establish requirements for the new hub while the masterplan was at outline planning stage ensured that priority was given to active travel on landscaped streets and a new station square, and connections to local neighbourhoods.
Growth in passenger numbers places additional demands on existing infrastructure. Liverpool Street Station is now the UK’s busiest, with up to 500,000 daily users, and needs substantial upgrades in capacity, permeability and accessibility to cater for the 150 million annual throughput projected by 2041. That must be funded through on-site commercial development rather than public subsidy. As a counterpoint to controversial schemes which require extensive demolition, we have developed an alternative approach which delivers the required office space but retains the existing station fabric without inflicting the harm they would be cause to the listed building and its setting. Our alternative has won the support of heritage bodies as well as the wider public, and we believe it could be delivered more quickly and without the disruption of the approved scheme. Good transport design must always reconcile diverse needs, and keep the public interest at the heart of projects.
Central Station, Sydney
Central Station, Sydney
Central Station, Sydney
Stations like London’s Euston illustrate the urgency of holistic and planned approaches. The station reached its end of life years ago but the lack of a plan and years of temporary works, disruption and construction to enable the HS2 line have created a poor experience for an extended period. It is not a fitting front door to London. Upgrades to stations should be coordinated in a way that does not inconvenience the travelling public or cause undue disruption – a ‘Do it once, do it right’ approach. By contrast, minimal disruption to day-to-day operations was a key factor in our design of the Northern Concourse at Sydney’s Central Station.
In New York, the proposed redevelopment of Penn Station represents an opportunity to transform its underground concourses into a hub that prioritises comfort for long-suffering commuters – taking stress points out of the daily grind – and supports broader urban objectives. Like all complex transport projects, achieving this requires a vision that extends beyond the engineering challenges alone, and recognises the civic role of rail infrastructure.
Bond Street Station, London
Transit hubs are uniquely positioned to reconcile two aims that seem to pull in opposite directions: urban growth and carbon reduction. They offer efficient and space-saving solutions for urban mobility and enable greater density, while encouraging the shift from car domination to mass transit is essential for greener cities.
While rail remains the most sustainable method of mass transit, there are areas for improvement. One is better coordination between different modes of transport, and another is the environmental cost of station buildings: embodied carbon in construction, energy use in heating, ventilation and cooling. Both were central concerns in the design of Belfast Grand Central Station.
The durability of infrastructure presents opportunities for designs which stand the test of time, but all too often decisions reflect a short-term view. Nevertheless, the scale and function of station buildings offers important opportunities for innovation in modular construction, as well as sustainable materials such as cross-laminated timber that can aid carbon storage.
Waterloo Station, Sydney
Belfast Grand Central Station
Great stations of the past remain landmarks in many cities, and embody the aspirations of their age. This tradition can continue in forms that address today’s priorities, and resonate with the diverse communities our stations serve.
With governments such as that in the UK keen to support sustainable transport along with much-needed housing, more equitable environments, and greater economic growth, there is a real opportunity for bold, joined-up thinking. In doing so, infrastructure can again set the direction, and leave lasting, confident expressions of civic pride and ambition.
