Two London boroughs, Hammersmith and Camden, are considering a ‘high line’ based on the fantastic achievement in New York which turned a disused arial railway line into a community asset. Both are at the design stage, so will London see an elevated feature in the near future?
Hammersmith Bid ran a design competition in 2019 to design a high line in Hammersmith. One of the winning proposals was by Richard Jackson, which sees the Hammersmith Hi-Line vision draw on his experience as a landscape and garden designer. The winning entry reimagines the area as a sustainable garden space including a promenade, stepped seating area, and a boardwalk
Judges’ comments about the design were:
“An ambitious proposal, with lots of interesting ideas regarding new ways of growing in an urban setting. Good educational value”
“Like idea of expanding width and use”
Camden Highline, a charity set up for the purpose of enabling a new ‘high line’ in London has launched a competition in February 2021 for the design of the £35m project.The Camden Highline will turn a disused stretch of railway viaduct into a new elevated park and walking route, connecting Camden Gardens in the west to York Way in the east. It will be a space that people will be inspired by, learn from, and enjoy, with seating areas, cafés, arts interventions, and charitable activities.
The route is 1.2km long, around 8 metres above ground, and will bring new local green space to 20,000 people.
Both proposals are based on the imaginative use of disused space in New York known as the New York High Line. A TED talk by one of its designers can be seen here, New York High Line.
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