- New venue will contain purpose built Convention Centre
ExCeL London has formally announced plans for the next phase of development. Construction of Phase 2, which represents a further £160 million investment in the venue, will commence next month.
The extension will increase current event space by almost 50%, taking it to just under 100,000 m2 – the equivalent of 14 football pitches. The plans also include an integrated, covered walkway to Prince Regent DLR station, a conference centre for up to 2,000 delegates, a semi-permanent auditorium for up to 5,000 delegates, a permanent production kitchen, catering for large-scale banquets (up to 5,000 guests), and additional bars and restaurants.
Kevin Murphy, chief executive of ExCeL London says: "This development further reinforces ExCeL London as a world class venue which will continue to attract major events from around the world. The expansion will also provide huge economic benefits to the local community in terms of employment and facilities. The venue is currently one of the Borough's biggest employers, and the expansion will bring an additional 1,400 jobs to the area.
"However, this is only the beginning, as we are already looking to put plans for the next phase of development in place – enabling ExCeL London to remain at the forefront of both the domestic and international events market."
Phase 2 will add the following key features:
Prince Regent DLR Pedestrian Link
Part of the vision for Phase 2 is to create a greater sense of arrival at the east end of the venue. The extension will therefore include a covered walkway from Prince Regent DLR station to the east entrance of the boulevard.
- 32,500m2 of flat-floor Event Space:
This extension will increase the total event space from 65,000m2 to just under 100,000m2. Of this, 23,000m2 will be added as a fluid extension of Phase 1, whilst the remaining space will be dropped to dockside level – in both the North and South Halls, at the far eastside.
Semi-permanent Auditorium:
The 4,500m2 of dropped floor space, with 15m high ceilings, in the extended South Hall will allow for a semi-permanent auditorium with retractable seating for up to 5,000 delegates.
- Conference & Meeting Rooms:
New conference and meeting rooms will be located immediately above the new North Halls, accommodating up to 2,000 delegates. This space will provide a greater variety of room configurations, to suite a range of meetings and conferences, plus breakout space for exhibitions and larger events in the halls.
Mezzanine casual dining:
The east end of the boulevard will be brought to life with a new spiral section, leading up to a mezzanine level. This level will accommodate a dining restaurant, with seating for up to 300 guests. Adding to the variety of bars and restaurants already found in the boulevard this new level will also offer a further 7 'grab and go' retail units and a casual dining restaurant, for an additional 300 guests. Total seated dining will cater for 940 people.
- Permanent Production Kitchens:
Permanent production kitchens, large enough to service the entire venue, will be located on level 0 with direct access to the North Halls and new Conference and Meeting Rooms on level 3.
Additional Underground Parking:
The Phase 2 extension will increase the capacity of the undercroft car park by 625 spaces to 2,225.
London's transport infrastructure is also undergoing a multi-billion pound overhaul, as the travel system is updated in time for the Olympics and beyond.
According to the latest plans, many journey times will be slashed, with over-ground railway lines being used to access areas in East London from key commuter hot spots in Kent and Essex. In addition, with the new Channel Tunnel Link now open international visitors can reach the capital 20-minutes faster.
Future Transport Developments Include:
| Crossrail | |
| Route: | A major new railway, 12-car trains, connecting central London, the City, Canary Wharf and Heathrow to the areas east and west of the capital. |
| Cost: | £17.8 billion investment – already funded |
| When: | Given royal ascent in July 08; due to open in 2017 |
| Passengers: | 36,000 passengers per hour; 100,000 per day; 150 million per year |
| Benefits: | ExCeL London will have a major, dedicated Crossrail interchange at Custom House. Trains will run as frequently as on the Tube and tickets will be integrated with other London transport. Travelcards will also be valid in Greater London. |
| DLR Extensions | |
| Route: | Extensions linking Woolwich Arsenal and the commuter route from Kent, with King George V and Stratford International with Canning Town (2-stops from Custom House for ExCeL). |
| Cost: | £750 million |
| When: | Woolwich Arsenal extension – early 09; Stratford International – mid 2010 |
| Passengers: | 67 million passenger currently; 80 million by 2010; 100 million by 2012 |
| Benefits: | ExCeL London will have a direct DLR link with Stratford International via Custom House. Tipped to help improve transport for the 2012 Olympics, reducing travel times between Woolwich and Stratford to 20 minutes, and Bank to under half an hour. In peak periods trains could run every four minutes. |
The combination of DLR and Crossrail will have a delivery capacity of 40,000 passengers, per hour to ExCeL London - more than any other UK venue.
| East London Line Extension | |
| Route: | The existing line is being extended in two phases. Phase 1 is an extension north from Whitechapel to Highbury and Islington, and south to Crystal Palace and West Croydon, Phase 2 will extend the line west to Clapham Junction. |
| Cost: | £1.1 billion |
| When: | Phase 1 – 2010. Phase 2 – 2015 |
| Passengers: | 26 million per year |
| Benefits: | Currently just a small part of the tube map, the East London line is expected to become a major transport link. The line intersects with the DLR at Shadwell, providing direct links to Custom House for ExCeL. |
| Channel Tunnel Rail Link | |
| Route: | A 67-mile fast rail link from St Pancras International and Stratford International through Kent at Ebbsfleet International, to Paris, Brussels and Lille. |
| Cost: | £7.9 billion |
| When: | From November 14th 2007 |
| Passengers: | 4 million per year |
| Benefits: | The new Channel Tunnel Rail Link will cut 20 minutes from current Eurostar journey times, making it possible to travel from London to Paris in 2 hrs 15 minutes, London to Brussels in 1 hour 51 minutes and London to Lille in 1 hour 20 minutes. Stratford International will link to Canning Town (3-stops), for connections to ExCeL London. |
Commenting on the new transport links, Kevin Murphy, CEO, ExCeL London, said, "This is fantastic news for London, our business and our clients. With a Crossrail station at Custom House for ExCeL, our customers and residents will see their journey times from ExCeL to Central London and Heathrow more than halve. The journey time to Paddington would be 18 minutes and to Heathrow about 30 minutes. As well as reducing journey times, this first-class rail service will be able to carry 1,500 passengers per train, providing an extra 40% rail capacity to London. Crossrail is essential to London's competitiveness and maintaining its' reputation as a leading global financial and cultural city."
Murphy continues, "Crossrail will help our clients to grow their shows internationally as well as domestically. London City Airport already provides a first class service to Europe, but Crossrail will open up routes to Heathrow for long haul customers, giving them a fast and efficient public transport service to their exhibition, conference or event. With the new high speed Eurostar cutting journey times by at least 20 minutes to Paris, Brussels and Lille, the extension of the East London Line and new DLR routes, we will have the most flexible, proficient and comprehensive transport service of any other venue in Europe, if not the world."