When people think about London’s changing skyline, their eyes go straight to the sky. The focus is usually on the height and shape of the City’s new buildings, such as the two new towers given the green light last week. But there’s a whole other story playing out right under our feet.
The City of London’s biggest transformation is happening at street level and many of us barely notice. It’s on the pavements, crossings, and public spaces, that the real success of a city is decided.
The Ground is Where Business Happens
The health of London’s streets isn’t just a design issue, or a culture war between drivers, pedestrians and cyclists. It’s an important business issue too.
The success of a street is measured by how many people want to spend time there. And people on foot aren’t just passing through - they are the city’s most valuable customers.
Studies consistently show that people walking, cycling, and using public transport spend more than drivers. A 2018 study by TfL and UCL Bartlett found that pedestrians spend 40% more each month than those who arrive by car. They stay longer, visit more shops, and keep high streets alive.
Better streets are essential economic infrastructure. Take the City of London, for example. Most of its tallest buildings are tightly packed into the Eastern Cluster – the area around Leadenhall Street, St Mary Axe and Bishopsgate. This is not only because of space constraints elsewhere, but also because the City fiercely protects key lines of sight to St Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London.
That planning policy forces tall buildings to concentrate in specific zones, creating incredible density not just in the skyline, but on the ground. This makes good street design and pedestrian spaces critical - it requires careful thinking about how people move at street level.
Property developers and the City Corporation work with interdisciplinary experts (like myself), who have developed sophisticated models of the City of London. We use these models, based on data on pedestrian movement, land use data, future population, and transport, to make sure that streets, walkways, and public spaces can handle the impacts of upward development.
The Science of Better Streets
Urban science is advancing fast. Techniques like Space Syntax analyse how street networks and building layouts shape human behaviour. Small design changes can have major effects on where people go, how safe they feel, and where they spend.
Data is transforming the field. Smart sensors, mobile tracking, and footfall studies give planners tools to test and refine designs before they’re built. Streets can be planned not just to look good, but to deliver real outcomes as density increases above them: more visitors, longer dwell times, safer journeys, better business.
This growing body of evidence, together with a deeper understanding of how people experience cities, is helping cities like London shift from guesswork to visionary strategies backed by data and modelling.
Resilient Cities for the Future
While building upwards might look like progress, tight net zero targets mean it’s time to rethink what progress looks like. The low-carbon city of the future won’t be built from scratch – it will be retrofitted. Upgrading existing buildings and greening public spaces cuts emissions and adds value by creating cooler, more comfortable places that attract a wide range of people and businesses.
Security matters too. As legislation raises standards for public safety, urban design must adapt. Smart planning on the ground – using benches, landscaping, and traffic controls – can deliver protection without turning public spaces into fortress zones. A resilient city is walkable, vibrant, and built for people. And it’s not just sustainable – it’s commercially competitive.
The City’s Unique Advantage
What sets the City apart is its blend of old and new. Modern towers rise alongside medieval churches and historic landmarks at ground level. These heritage assets aren’t just beautiful; they attract tourists, boost footfall, and underpin the City’s commercial appeal.
Cities have always been collective achievements, built layer by layer over centuries, shaped by how people live, move and interact. Today, with the help of cutting-edge urban science, we have better tools to keep refining them. When it comes to London’s future, it’s not just about looking up at the skyline. The big story is happening on the streets.
Anna Rose is Director of Space Syntax
