The Elizabeth Line, London’s new transport network, designed by Grimshaw, Maynard, Equation and AtkinsRéalis has been named by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) as winner of the 2024 RIBA Stirling Prize.

The Elizabeth Line is the result of a collaboration between architects, engineers and designers, who have realised a highly inclusive and cohesive transport system that has already demonstrated its social, environmental and economic value. By expanding capacity, reducing congestion, supporting the regeneration of the entire capital and creating employment opportunities, the Elizabeth Line continues to contribute to the long-term growth of the city.

The award was created in 1996 and recognises the best new architecture in the United Kingdom.

Named in honour of Queen Elizabeth II, the Elizabeth Line runs from Reading and Heathrow to Essex and South East London. Accommodating 700,000 passengers every weekday and spanning 62 miles of track and 26 miles of tunnels, it is an extraordinarily complex architectural feat masked by an elegant simplicity.

The construction of the Elizabeth Line was a major challenge. The network has been running through the London underground for two centuries, accumulating an incredible history of achievements and, at the same time meticulously avoiding the city's underground structures and facilities.

The excavation project, which involved moving six million tonnes of earth, became the largest archaeological dig ever undertaken in Britain, uncovering a wealth of historical artefacts, including the remains of a woolly mammoth. 55 million years ago. Removed earth, to give more space for the network tunnels was reused to create a nature reserve in Essex.

The Elizabeth Line provides a quietly calm environment, with a scheme-defining muted palette of perforated cladding, sensitive lighting and wayfinding systems creating an intuitive, frictionless experience.

The Elizabeth line by Grimshaw. Photograph by Hufton + Crow
The Elizabeth line by Grimshaw. Photograph by Hufton + Crow.

Curvaceous, fluid lines converge and diverge, carefully guiding passengers to flow around corners, down cavernous vaulted tunnels and onto wide, open platforms. The lighting subtly shifts between warmer and cooler tones to highlight different levels and junctures, with a warm, softly diffused band of indirect lighting spanning the platforms above the train doors and direct, cool lighting in smaller cross-passages.

The expansive tunnels and uncluttered double-length platforms – designed to accommodate full-size trains – feel generously spacious, while major features such as seating and freestanding ‘totem’ concourse signage made from screen-printed toughened glass are repeated from station to station. The family of finishes give the whole network coherence, helping passengers navigate the network with confidence.

The network is an exemplar of inclusive design, not only through the application of step-free access throughout but also through sensitive considerations to each sensory experience. Interventions such as hiding acoustic mats behind cladding to absorb excess noise, removing unnecessary fixtures and fittings and employing a restrained colour palette help to create a sense of calm for those who find underground travel overwhelming.

Environmental considerations help to future-proof the network and range from passive cooling at the platform level to reduce the need for mechanical heating, to escalator motion sensors that minimise energy waste. Space has also been created for further air conditioning and temperature control, enabling the network to evolve with the challenges of climate change.

The Elizabeth line by Grimshaw. Photograph by Hufton + Crow
The Elizabeth line by Grimshaw. Photograph by Hufton + Crow.

The winning scheme comprises platform architecture, passenger tunnels, escalators, station concourses, signage, furniture, fittings, finishes and supporting technology. The 10 new stations have each been designed separately.

Speaking on behalf of the RIBA Stirling Prize jury, Muyiwa Oki, RIBA President and Jury Chair, said:

“The Elizabeth Line is a triumph in architect-led collaboration, offering a flawless, efficient, beautifully choreographed solution to inner-city transport.

It’s an uncluttered canvas that incorporates a slick suite of architectural components to create a consistent, line-wide identity – through which thousands of daily passengers navigate with ease.

Descending into the colossal network of tunnels feels like entering a portal to the future, where the typical commuter chaos is transformed into an effortless experience.

This is an architecture of the digital age – a vast scheme that utilises cutting-edge technology to create distinctive spatial characteristics and experiences.

It rewrites the rules of accessible public transport, and sets a bold new standard for civic infrastructure, opening up the network and by extension, London, to everyone.”

More information

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Project team
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Grimshaw Architects (Principal architect.- Neill McClements), Atkins Realis, Equation, Maynard.
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Collaborators
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Architect.- Hawkins\Brown
Structural engineer.- Arup/Atkins JV.
MEP consultant.- WSP.
Quantity surveyor.- Crossrail.
Project manager.- Crossrail.
Principal designer.- Crossrail.
CAD software used.- MicroStation.
Annual CO2 emissions.- Unavailable.

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Client
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Crossrail.
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Main contractor
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Laing O’Rourke.
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Area
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Gross internal floor area.-  28,500m².
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Dates
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Start on-site.-  July 2012.
Completion.-  January 2022.
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Location
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London, UK.
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Photography
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Grimshaw Architects. Grimshaw was founded by Sir Nicholas Grimshaw in 1980. The practice became a Partnership in 2007 and operates worldwide with offices in New York, London, Melbourne, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur and Doha employing over 500 staff. Grimshaw was awarded the 2016 AJ100 International Practice of the Year Award for the firm's breadth of work around the globe.

Sir Nicholas Grimshaw graduated with Honours from the Architectural Association in 1965. He immediately started his own practice and won several awards for his buildings in the 1960s and 1970s, such as the RIBA award-winning Herman Miller factory in Bath and the apartments at 125 Park Road – both of which projects are now listed Grade II buildings. These early projects were noted for their innovative approach to construction and detailing – values that are evident in Grimshaw’s contemporary work. In 1980, Nicholas Grimshaw and Partners was formed, and the practice won wide acclaim and over 100 awards for architecture and civic design.

Sir Nicholas has lectured in 23 countries worldwide, and he is a registered architect in England, France, Germany and Spain. Following examination in 2002, he is also registered to practice architecture in the State of New York.

In early 2014, Sir Nicholas was one of five architects featured in the BBC4 series The Brits Who Built the Modern World. The same production company also produced Some Kind of Joy: The Inside Story of Grimshaw in Twelve Buildings in 2016, which is currently being shown at film festivals throughout the world.

Sir Nicholas was elected a Royal Academician in 1994 and in the same year he was elected an Honorary Fellow of the AIA. He was knighted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II in 2002, and was President of the Royal Academy of Arts from 2004 to 2011. Sir Nicholas Grimshaw continues to lead the partnership as the Chairman of the Board.
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Published on: October 20, 2024
Cite: "London’s Elizabeth Line awarded with 2024 RIBA Stirling Prize for architecture " METALOCUS. Accessed
<http://www.metalocus.es/en/news/londons-elizabeth-line-awarded-2024-riba-stirling-prize-architecture> ISSN 1139-6415
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