MARBLE ARCH
Repositioning Marble Arch as a safe, inclusive and democratic public space
Year
2018 – 2019
Service
Visions, Strategies and Masterplans
Reports
Marble Arch: Ideas for the Public Realm, 2018
Marble Arch: Proposal for the Public Realm, 2019
Client
The Portman Estate
Collaborators
Norman Rourke Pryme, Marble Arch BID
Location
City of Westminster, London, UK
Marble Arch, designed in 1828 by John Nash, is an extraordinary landmark and a gateway to the West End with global significance. Despite its prominent position and large areas of public space – comparable in size to Trafalgar Square – the monument is currently isolated and the spaces around it are limited in their use. The dominance of the Inner Ring Road at Marble Arch, and its crucial role in London’s Strategic Road Network, presents a complex context in which to achieve improvements for the public realm.
Working with Norman Rourke Pryme for The Portman Estate and with the support of Marble Arch London BID, Publica’s proposal for the public realm provides a more beautiful, healthier and safer environment for the 2.2 million people who visit it each year.
The proposal sets out a pragmatic, holistic approach to achieve meaningful improvements at Marble Arch. The proposed strategy aims to deliver a high-quality public realm with improved walking, cycling and transport connections creating a more inclusive environment with improved air quality, underground entrances and enhanced views to the listed national monument.
Pedestrians have to cross seven lanes of traffic just to get from Marble Arch island to Oxford Street
No direct pedestrian crossing exists from Marble Arch island to Speakers’ Corner
Pavements along Park Lane are narrow but heavily utilised by bus users and passers-by
Marble Arch is an extraordinary landmark and beautiful structure, a pleasure to pass by and admire
The Tyburn Tree commemorative plaque is found on a traffic island at the junction of Edgware Road and Marble Arch
High quality and well-used cycling connections from Marble Arch through Speakers’ Corner and into Hyde Park are close by
Marble Arch island is a go-to civic space for public expression
Southern approach to Marble Arch from Park Lane
Marble Arch temporary theatre before an evening performance in 2018
Extinction Rebellion gathering around Marble Arch in 2019
Publica’s scheme for Marble Arch alters the movement of traffic – with traffic largely removed from close proximity to the Arch and the western end of Oxford Street. Improved connectivity between Oxford Street and Hyde Park is achieved through a single, direct pedestrian crossing instead of the current four separate crossings and 14 lanes of traffic to make this journey.
A new civic space for gathering at the monument is also unlocked – providing a new piazza with seating, trees and amenities and an extended programmable event space.
Improved pedestrian connections to/from Marble Arch, Oxford Street, Edgware Road and Great Cumberland Place
A new welcoming piazza connecting Marble Arch, Oxford Street and Park Lane, to the west of the monument
An improved gateway to Oxford Street
Looking west from Oxford Street, an event at Marble Arch
A new civic square and amenities at Marble Arch
Throughout the design process, Publica have consulted widely on the scheme with local stakeholders including BIDs, property owners and neighbhourhood forums who recognized the enormous potential of the spaces that could be unlocked by the proposal. The scheme, which transforms the area into a high-quality, safe civic space to use and travel through, while protecting its unique architectural heritage, secured support from London First’s WESt Group in January 2020.
MARBLE ARCH
Repositioning Marble Arch as a safe, inclusive and democratic public space
Year
2018 – 2019
Service
Visions, Strategies and Masterplans
Reports
Marble Arch: Ideas for the Public Realm, 2018
Marble Arch: Proposal for the Public Realm, 2019
Client
The Portman Estate
Collaborators
Norman Rourke Pryme, Marble Arch BID
Location
City of Westminster, London, UK
Marble Arch, designed in 1828 by John Nash, is an extraordinary landmark and a gateway to the West End with global significance. Despite its prominent position and large areas of public space – comparable in size to Trafalgar Square – the monument is currently isolated and the spaces around it are limited in their use. The dominance of the Inner Ring Road at Marble Arch, and its crucial role in London’s Strategic Road Network, presents a complex context in which to achieve improvements for the public realm.
Working with Norman Rourke Pryme for The Portman Estate and with the support of Marble Arch London BID, Publica’s proposal for the public realm provides a more beautiful, healthier and safer environment for the 2.2 million people who visit it each year.
The proposal sets out a pragmatic, holistic approach to achieve meaningful improvements at Marble Arch. The proposed strategy aims to deliver a high-quality public realm with improved walking, cycling and transport connections creating a more inclusive environment with improved air quality, underground entrances and enhanced views to the listed national monument.
Pedestrians have to cross seven lanes of traffic just to get from Marble Arch island to Oxford Street
No direct pedestrian crossing exists from Marble Arch island to Speakers’ Corner
Pavements along Park Lane are narrow but heavily utilised by bus users and passers-by
Marble Arch is an extraordinary landmark and beautiful structure, a pleasure to pass by and admire
The Tyburn Tree commemorative plaque is found on a traffic island at the junction of Edgware Road and Marble Arch
High quality and well-used cycling connections from Marble Arch through Speakers’ Corner and into Hyde Park are close by
Marble Arch island is a go-to civic space for public expression
Southern approach to Marble Arch from Park Lane
Marble Arch temporary theatre before an evening performance in 2018
Extinction Rebellion gathering around Marble Arch in 2019
Publica’s scheme for Marble Arch alters the movement of traffic – with traffic largely removed from close proximity to the Arch and the western end of Oxford Street. Improved connectivity between Oxford Street and Hyde Park is achieved through a single, direct pedestrian crossing instead of the current four separate crossings and 14 lanes of traffic to make this journey.
A new civic space for gathering at the monument is also unlocked – providing a new piazza with seating, trees and amenities and an extended programmable event space.
Improved pedestrian connections to/from Marble Arch, Oxford Street, Edgware Road and Great Cumberland Place
A new welcoming piazza connecting Marble Arch, Oxford Street and Park Lane, to the west of the monument
An improved gateway to Oxford Street
Looking west from Oxford Street, an event at Marble Arch
A new civic square and amenities at Marble Arch
Throughout the design process, Publica have consulted widely on the scheme with local stakeholders including BIDs, property owners and neighbhourhood forums who recognized the enormous potential of the spaces that could be unlocked by the proposal. The scheme, which transforms the area into a high-quality, safe civic space to use and travel through, while protecting its unique architectural heritage, secured support from London First’s WESt Group in January 2020.