Low Line Commons
Strategic vision and implementation strategy
Reframing the potential of the Victorian railway viaducts by weaving in and integrating spaces for nature and people.
Client: Better Bankside
Location: London
A sustainable and incremental vision for the community-led transformation of the Low Line as a vibrant green corridor threading through the diverse neighbourhoods of Bankside, London Bridge and Bermondsey. The project was won through a RIBA Competition. It won two NLA Awards: Overall Winner and Winner in the Planning Category in 2021.
Key project themes include:
Productive green infrastructure
Convivial public space
Historical and cultural identity
Productive green infrastructure
The proposed strategic vision connects people with nature and increases environmental resilience along its length by promoting innovative greening and sustainability projects that mitigate climate change. The key challenge is retrofitting a continuous green corridor within a tight urban fabric. To this end, strategic locations for a hierarchy of green ‘stepping stones’ are identified, supporting urban greening local initiatives and unlocking environmental value.
Together the spaces along the Low Line make up a 3.5 km natural, cultural resource as large as the 25ha Southwark Park. The proposed vision prioritises establishing and enhancing biodiversity and ecological connectivity, building climate resilience and connecting people with each other and nature.
Convivial public space
Responding to local community needs in identified locations, a series of activity hubs are encouraged to blossom incrementally into purposeful and inclusive public spaces. Over time, these will catalyse further spin- offs in the area that will be curated to create a larger reinvigorated, people-oriented district along the length of the Low Line. By increasing permeability and connectivity, the route will be transformed into a seam stitching the immediate context together.
The viaduct is characterised by pockets of left over, underused spaces between buildings that currently divide neighbourhoods, block access, and create dark and oppressive spaces. These are proposed to be transformed into nature-rich and inclusive spaces to support community interaction and the local economy.
Historical and cultural identity
The proposals celebrates the diversity and heritage of each neighbourhood from London Bridge to Bermondsey with spaces that reflect local character and history and encourage communities to unify and share a ‘sense of place’. It reveals the history of the 150-year old viaducts by opening up and repurposing spaces such as the arches that currently form the Low Line route, and have been left underused at street level. This is to be further supported by a wayfinding strategy.
Cumulatively, cutting across these 3 themes, a toolkit solution of 12 components is designed to be used to provide the best response to each unique neighbourhood. This provides an enabling framework for incremental transformation. The toolkit includes pocket parks, wildlife micro habitats, SuDS, planters and street trees, overhead habitats, productive private green spaces, sensory play areas, pedestrian priority, lighting, canopies, seating and pop-up uses.
