We’re upgrading London Liverpool Street station, starting this summer. Our work will help you move through the station faster and more comfortably so that you enjoy a better travel experience here.
A station fit for the future
London Liverpool Street has become the busiest station in Britain in the past year, with almost 80.4 million people passing through between April 2022 and March 2023. This is an increase of around 50 million more people since the previous year when it was only the fourth busiest station in Britain.
One of the main reasons behind the huge increase in people using the station has been the opening of the Elizabeth line – which partially opened in May 2022 and fully opened in May 2023. The industry body Office of Rail and Road described the full opening on this line to have “changed the way people travel”.
We expect this number to increase in the future given population numbers in London and in the surrounding counties are also expected to rise. There are already lots of strategic developments happening along both mainlines out of London Liverpool Street, plus we’re expecting the demand for in-office space to rise in the City.
A better travel experience
We’re passionate about giving you great journeys – and that doesn’t just mean helping make sure your trains run on time.
It means we’re always looking to make your in-station experience is as efficient, safe, and stress free as possible – so we monitor station performance just as closely as train performance.
Customer satisfaction at our stations is the most important part of how we measure station performance. That’s why where we see changes in travel habits, trends or capacity, we work with our partners to make sure we reflect that in your station experience – and that’s what’s at the heart of our work at London Liverpool Street
As Bronwyn Clarke, station manager at London Liverpool Street station, puts it: “As a station team we’re really excited for the projects starting soon. They will have a huge positive impact on the passenger experience, helping people move more seamlessly though the station, both on and off trains.”
It’s a view backed up by Lawrence Bowman, route director for Network Rail Anglia, the route for which London Liverpool Street is the main station. “It is so important that our managed station, the busiest in the UK, is able to cope with the increase in passenger numbers we’ve seen over the last few years,” he says.
So, to ensure we continue giving you a great travel experience at the station, we’ll be improving the layout and facilities at the station. This will help the station better accommodate the vast number of people using it.
More ticket gates for faster journeys
The current layout means that you may have to queue at one of the 36 ticket barriers around platforms one to 10 during busy periods. We understand that this can be frustrating and inconvenient.
In 2021, working with train operator Greater Anglia we installed new gates for platforms 11 to 17 at the station. This worked well to ease congestion, and the next phase aims to improve this further for you.
Starting this July, we’re working with our contractor Spence to install 21 new automatic ticket gates for platforms one to 10 – including four wide access gates.
This will help ease congestion even more, keeping you moving swiftly and safely on your journeys, as well help make the area more accessible for all.
We’ll also be removing the five existing retail units on the gateline. Three new retail units will instead be created outside of the gateline so that you can continue enjoying great retail choices at the station.
A brighter and lighter roof
We’ll also be working on the roof that covers platforms one to 10 and the station concourse. This will include replacing all the roof panels over the platforms and refurbishing or replacing the rest.
The new panels will allow more natural light into the station – transforming the ambience by making it brighter and more comfortable.
Additionally, we’ll be upgrading the rainwater drainage system to reduce potential leaks onto the platforms when there is heavy rain, improving safety and cleanliness.
For more information about London Liverpool Street, or any of our 20 stations across Britain, you can find information on our station pages.
