Britain’s biggest cities could accommodate more than one million additional homes around inner-city railway stations if housing densities matched comparable cities overseas, new research suggests.
Analysis from the Centre for Cities estimates that Britain’s 12 largest cities have capacity for around 1.2 million more homes near stations compared with equivalent urban areas in France and Japan.
If realised, that would represent a substantial addition to housing supply – potentially creating significant new-build stock for estate agents to sell and additional homes for letting agents and property managers as developments complete.
London accounts for the largest potential increase, with the think tank estimating a shortfall of more than 500,000 homes around stations. Glasgow could potentially accommodate another 183,000 homes, while Manchester has capacity for around 134,000, according to the analysis.
The research found that, unlike many comparable G7 cities, housing density in Britain does not consistently increase around railway stations.
In Sheffield and Liverpool, average housing densities are actually lower near stations than they are further away.
Development rates have also lagged international counterparts. During the decade from 2011, Britain’s major cities built less than half the number of homes around train and tram stations achieved by comparable French and Japanese cities.
Centre for Cities argues that increasing development around existing transport infrastructure could make a significant contribution towards addressing Britain’s housing shortage.
Its analysis suggests closing the density gap around urban stations alone could reduce the country’s housing shortage by approximately 25%.
There are already examples of significantly higher development around transport hubs.
Manchester was the strongest-performing British city outside London during the period examined, delivering approximately 30,000 homes around inner-city stations between 2011 and 2021, including developments surrounding Metrolink tram stops.
London delivered approximately 300,000 homes around stations during the same period.
Glasgow, Birmingham and Liverpool have also increased development, although the research found that they continue to underperform comparable cities in France and Japan because of smaller transport networks and lower housing delivery per station.
Leeds and Bristol face an additional constraint because their transport infrastructure provides fewer locations around which higher-density development can take place.
Centre for Cities is now calling for greater control over railway land to be transferred to metro mayors to accelerate housing delivery.
It recommends creating a fast-track mechanism for transferring suitable land around stations from Network Rail to mayoral combined authorities.
The think tank also wants greater use of Mayoral Development Corporations to oversee regeneration projects and Mayoral Development Orders to accelerate developments that meet predetermined planning requirements.
The proposals are intended to address what Centre for Cities regards as two significant barriers to housing delivery: fragmented ownership of land surrounding railway stations and delays within the planning system.
For the property industry, unlocking even a proportion of the 1.2 million-home potential identified by the research could create a significant longer-term pipeline of new sales, lettings and property management opportunities.
Anthony Breach, director of policy and research at Centre for Cities, said: “Building a lot of homes around existing stations is one of the most effective ways to boost city economies. In a low growth economy like Britain, it is one of the most glaringly obvious problems to fix.
“Going big on homes around stations will make a significant dent in the housing shortage. It’s worth around a million homes in Britain. It makes public transport far more efficient and cuts commuting times. It expands the labor market which is good for productivity. It regenerates areas that residents have seen fall into disrepair.
“Fixing this uniquely British problem will deliver significant returns. But the Government must also be clear eyed that without speedy planning reforms and rail devolution – good intentions will get stuck in the swamp of delay, red tape and inter-agency bureaucracy.”
Steve Rotheram, mayor of the Liverpool City Region, commented: “We’re already leading the country on station devolution in the Liverpool City Region – and showing what can be achieved when transport, housing and regeneration are planned together.
“We’ve made good progress, with 36,000 homes built since I was elected and have a pipeline to build a further 64,000 new homes across 300 sites, but this report shows there is much more we could be doing around our rail network.
“We want to build on what we’ve started. Giving us greater control over stations and the land around them would open up more sites for development and help us build the homes our residents need, where the transport links already exist.”
The ‘density gap’ around stations extends to outer suburbs of large British cities. Matching the density within walking distance of outer suburb stations in large French and Japanese cities would lead to an additional 1.1 million homes in large British cities, bringing the total density gap around urban rail stations to over two million homes.
