A £1.5B transformation of London’s Liverpool Street station is being proposed by developer Sellar, including a major new office building and £450M in infrastructure upgrades to improve access, capacity and overcrowding issues for the station’s users.

The transport improvements will be funded by a new mixed-use commercial development above the concourse comprising up to 850K SF of workspace across 10 floors below a newly built six-storey Andaz hotel, operated by Hyatt, plus a new culture, retail and leisure district.

The grade-A office space is being designed with strong environmental and wellness credentials, according to Sellar, which said it is considering the provision of flexible office floorplates, which will be among the largest in the Square Mile. These will incorporate collaborative spaces, including external terraces with access to green space.

Sellar, the developer behind the London Bridge Quarter and Paddington Square, is working in partnership with global rail transport operator MTR and Network Rail.

Key stakeholders also include Transport for London and Andaz London Liverpool Street hotel owner Hyatt. The scheme's architect is Herzog & de Meuron.

The proposals also include the creation of more than 1.5 acres of public realm in and around the main station building and Hope Square, as well as the pedestrianisation of Liverpool Street.

A large-scale new public roof garden with 24/7 access and leisure uses is also being proposed, while new leisure retail and dining offers will be included within the commercial development and throughout the upgraded station concourse.

Liverpool Street was one of the first station terminal areas in the capital to undergo large-scale redevelopment with the Broadgate office complex in the 1980s, in what has become a vibrant part of London with the refurbishment of Spitalfields and the emergence of Shoreditch as a nightlife centre. The Sellar scheme marks a new iteration of development at the station.

Accessibility and speed of transit will be improved through the provision of step-free access across the station and to all London Underground platforms. This will be addressed by increasing the number of lifts from one to seven, including six more escalators to bring the total to 10, and improving the London Underground station concourse and entrance.

The historic elements and façade of the Grade II-listed Andaz hotel, which originally opened as the Great Eastern hotel in 1884, will be restored so it connects to the concourse and creates a new public realm.

Originally fully opened in 1875, and London’s busiest station, Liverpool Street serves seven Underground lines, the Elizabeth line, London Overground and Greater Anglia, with around 135 million passengers passing through it annually.

“Liverpool Street will be transformed into a destination in its own right," Sellar chief executive James Sellar said. "London is at a pivotal moment post-Brexit and post-pandemic and we need to show a willingness to commit to infrastructure improvements.”

Developer Sellar was behind the Shard Quarter development at London Bridge and has a 5M SF development pipeline including urban transformation projects at Paddington Square, Liverpool Street station, and Canada and Water Dockside plus further projects in Camden and Bermondsey.