Following the highly awaited opening of the Elizabeth line, London Property Alliance has published a research paper, The Crossrail Effect: How the Elizabeth Line is transforming the capital.
The report explores the multi-faceted impact of the Elizabeth line on central London’s built environment and economy, revealing the vital role played by the project in driving economic and social prosperity across the capital and beyond.
The report has been authored by Knight Frank and produced with supporting case studies and contributions from, British Land, Central District Alliance BID, Derwent London, GPE, Hatton Garden BID, Helical, Landsec and Shaftesbury Capital, among others.
Some key takeaways include:
- Office sub-markets close to Elizabeth line stations are outperforming on pre-let transactions
- The Elizabeth line has sparked almost 200,000 new office jobs and the opening of 171 hotels, 2,666 new food and beverage outlets and 12 museums
- 51% of central London office take up in 2023 has been within a 10-minute walk of Elizabeth line stations
- Since opening, the five-day weekly average for office occupancy levels has risen by 11 percentage points
Some key recommendations include:
- Greater levels of redevelopment – In future projects, encouraging greater levels of office redevelopment around stations is essential to capitalise on anticipated demand levels
- Ensure consistency in planning to deliver net zero buildings – faster – the report demonstrates the appeal of sustainable, best in class office space. To deliver the office space that will attract businesses and talent, we need to take a Retrofit First, Not Retrofit Only approach to development
- Long term planning is essential – Good transport infrastructure drives associated agglomeration benefits that flow to the wider economy. Long-term planning of transport infrastructure that improves connectivity between and within UK cities should therefore be prioritised. The Government needs to accelerate the full delivery of HS2 including its Euston terminus
- Leadership and cross-party working and support necessary to drive projects forward – Schemes of such regional and national importance would benefit if they were part of a National Transport Strategy, complementing the work of the National Infrastructure Commission overseen by a cross-party strategic infrastructure group to drive them forward through election cycles
- Consider innovative funding models – Examples such as Tax Incremental Financing and a fair and targeted property tax, could help pay for much-needed future infrastructure.
