Old Oak and Park Royal (OPDC) Local Plan
Core idea
HS2/Elizabeth Line hub-led intensification
Why it matters
Creates a new metropolitan center around a national rail interchange
Description
A statutory local plan adopted in 2022 by the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation, the mayoral development corporation covering a swathe of industrial west London. The plan organises intensive mixed-use development around the Old Oak Common interchange, where the HS2 high-speed line meets the Elizabeth line, while protecting and intensifying the Park Royal industrial estate. It provides for tens of thousands of new homes and jobs on largely brownfield railway and industrial land.
Significance
The plan is one of the clearest British examples of hub-led intensification, using a national rail interchange to seed a new metropolitan centre, and revives the development-corporation model within London governance. It contributes to debates about balancing industrial land retention against housing pressure, and about whether infrastructure-led mega-schemes can deliver inclusive growth for surrounding deprived neighbourhoods.
What shaped it
- Transit-oriented development (TOD) (1993)
- The compact city (1973-1990s)
- Land-value capture and betterment (developed from the early 20th century)
Sources
- https://www.london.gov.uk/who-we-are/city-halls-partners/old-oak-and-park-royal-development-corp
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Oak_and_Park_Royal_Development_Corporation