Old Oak Common is an area of

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, West London. Together with neighbouring

Park Royal Park Royal is an area in North West London, North West London, England, partly in the London Borough of Brent and partly the London Borough of Ealing. It is the site of the largest business park in London, but despite intensive existing use, ...

, the area is intended to become the UK's largest regeneration scheme, the scale of which has led to Park Royal and Old Oak Common being described as a potential "

Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central ...

of West London". The area is traditionally known for its

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

depots, particularly Old Oak Common TMD. Further south lies an open area, Wormwood Scrubs Park, and Wormwood Scrubs prison. Willesden Junction station lies to the north of the area. In the mid-19th century it was a centre for pig farming.

History

Originally, Old Oak Common was a stretch of land defined by what became the

Harrow Road The Harrow Road is an ancient route in North West London which runs from Paddington in a northwesterly direction towards Harrow. It is also the name given to the immediate surrounding area of Queens Park and Kensal Green, straddling the NW10 ...

at its northern end, and its eastern edge was the northern source of

Stamford Brook Stamford Brook was a tributary of the Tideway stretch of the River Thames in west London supplied by three headwaters. Historically used as an irrigation ditch or dyke the network of small watercourses had four lower courses and mouths. Histo ...

, forming a boundary with Wormwood Scrubs. By 1801, the Paddington Canal had cut it in half, further reducing its size. With the coming of the railways, most of the common was lost and what remained became part of Wormwood Scrubs. The

Great Western Railway The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 mill ...

Great Western Main Line The Great Western Main Line (GWML) is a main line railway in England that runs westwards from London Paddington to . It connects to other main lines such as those from Reading to Penzance and Swindon to Swansea. Opened in 1841, it was the ...

(GWML) of 1838–1841 from

London Paddington Paddington, also known as London Paddington, is a Central London railway terminus and London Underground station complex, located on Praed Street in the Paddington area. The site has been the London terminus of services provided by the Great W ...

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city i ...

and the 1903 Acton-Northolt line to the Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway at Northolt divided at Old Oak junction. The partially singled Acton-Northolt line closed in December 2018 to allow for the construction of Old Oak Common railway station, which will offer interchange between GWML trains, the

Elizabeth line The Elizabeth line is a high-frequency hybrid urban–suburban rail service in London and its suburbs. It runs services on dedicated infrastructure in central London from the Great Western Main Line west of Paddington to and via Whitechapel t ...

and the

High Speed 2 High Speed 2 (HS2) is a planned high-speed railway line in England, the first phase of which is under construction in stages and due for completion between 2029 and 2033, depending on approval for later stages. The new line will run from its m ...

(HS2) line heading north. Additional rail interchanges may be provided with the construction of two new

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, (via archive.org). it now serves a large part of Greater London as w ...

stations, on the West London line and Old Oak Common Lane on the

North London line The North London line (NLL) is a railway line which passes through the inner suburbs of west, north-west, north, and east London, England between Richmond in the south-west and Stratford in the east, avoiding central London. Its route is a r ...

. In summer 2011, the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham launched a wide-ranging 'Park Royal City' plan for Old Oak Common, including the proposed station, and with light-rail lines to the surrounding areas.

Regeneration

In December 2013, ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publishe ...

'' reported that Antony Spencer, founder of Stadium Capital Development, was to head up a £5 billion regeneration scheme in the area, with partner

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus ...

. The proposal included new homes, office, retail outlets, and a proposed football stadium for QPR. The planning application was rejected. The Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation was established in 2015 to lead regeneration and planning work for an area covering Old Oak Common and much of the

area. The combined redevelopment area is envisaged to provide 65,000 new jobs and 25,000 new homes. The engineering plans were revealed in 2018 showing a station at Old Oak Common for HS2, the high speed line running from London to Birmingham. Passengers using HS2 will be able to disembark at Old Oak Common and interchange with the Elizabeth line,

Chiltern Railways Chiltern Railways, formally The Chiltern Railway Company Limited, is a British train operating company that has operated the Chiltern Railways franchise since July 1996. Since 2009, it has been a subsidiary of Arriva UK Trains. Chiltern Rai ...

and

services. The station will have a capacity for around 100 million passengers, rivalling London Waterloo in Central London.

References

{{Parks and open spaces in London Areas of London Districts of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham Common land in London