Low Line Commons | PDP London with Macfarlane + Associates

Frameworks + Masterplans Large Scale

Low Line Commons is an urban regeneration initiative transforming Victorian railway viaducts from a barrier into a green seam, stitching together diverse neighbourhoods and communities via a continuous walking route.

The Low Line is an ongoing urban regeneration initiative that uses the railway viaducts that run through Bankside, London Bridge and Bermondsey to create a continuous walking route, connecting diverse neighbourhoods and communities. The vision aims to celebrate the area’s heritage; linking existing and new hubs of creativity, entertainment, and industry; shaping places of interest; and forging a blossoming sense of place. The initiative highlights how the network of spaces that constitute the urban fabric in Southwark are a coherent space by increasing permeability and connectivity, transforming the viaduct into a green seam stitching the immediate context together rather than a barrier separating it.

Under the umbrella of the Low Line, RIBA challenged architects, designers and ecologists to develop a green and creative strategy to underpin the future development of the viaduct. The brief was to increase environmental resilience by promoting innovative greening and sustainability initiatives that mitigate climate change, while celebrating the diversity of each neighbourhood it passes through.

As south London’s answer to the iconic Manhattan High Line, the international open-competition attracted 100+ entries from 35 countries, with our winning submission – the Low Line Commons – commended for its unique approach to meaningful grass-roots urban regeneration. Local stakeholders are at the centre of the project as their engagement throughout its lifespan is essential to both its short and long-term success. Employing a toolkit of interventions showcases the communal approach – providing the right response to each unique neighbourhood and connecting the spaces in-between.

It offers city agencies, community groups, local businesses, developers, and designers a guide to planning, designing, and realizing projects along the Low Line route with a focus on integration of nature-rich spaces. It will create a common approach to myriad land ownership, as each landowner can benefit from a shared and holistic approach to land use and management. Interventions will be big and small, by visionary designers or through community participation. Together they will form a vast natural resource – the centrepiece of London’s National Park City; a valuable cultural hub, and a community space forging symbiosis between residents and businesses.

Funding from the Mayors Good Growth Fund paid for Stage I and II of the Low Line Commons project which won both the Planning Award and Overall Award at the NLA Awards 2021. While winning these highly prestigious awards highlights the significant value of this initiative, the wait goes on for funding to bring the worthy Low Line Commons goals to life.

Project Team

  • PDP London – urban designers (lead consultant)
  • Macfarlane + Associates – landscape architects
  • Greengage – sustainability consultants
  • Studio 4215 – environmental consultants
Key Facts

Borough: Southwark
Length of study corridor: 3.5km (approx.)
Neighbourhood centres benefitted: 4
No. of Wards it passes through: 4
No. of trees aimed to be planted: 500
Area of biodiverse roofs aimed to be implemented: 50,000sqm
Area of wildflower meadows aimed to be planted: 1,000sqm
New wildlife habitats aimed to be created: 100

Key Features

Funding from the Mayors Good Growth Fund paid for the consortium’s work on Stage I and II of the Low Line Commons project which won both the Planning Award and Overall Award at the NLA Awards 2021.
The initiative pulls together numerous sites and community projects in Southwark under one umbrella.
Commended for its unique approach to bottom-up urban regeneration, the Low Line Commons initiative employs a toolkit of interventions that offers all local stakeholders the chance to plan, design and realise projects along the Low Line route with a focus on integration of nature-rich spaces.
Not only do its strategic objectives and vision hold centrally the three pillars of sustainability to secure its future development, but its inherent value comes from repurposing and celebrating existing infrastructure around which diverse communities are connected.