SKYSCRAPERS RISING
The Shard is currently the tallest building in London standing at a height of 309m – it is also the tallest building in all of the UK and EU. It’s held the crown since its completion in 2012, but is its reign at the top going to be short-lived?
There are several buildings presently under construction and approved for construction that are nearing the Shard in height. One of them is 22 Bishops Gate at 278m – it will be the second tallest building in London once it’s complete in 2019. It will quickly be surpassed by the recently approved 1 Undershaft which will soar up to 290m.
Unfortunately none of the proposed or approved buildings will surpass The Shard – and it doesn’t seem one will any time soon due to airspace restrictions. Nothing can currently be built higher than the Shard.
The rise of the skyscrapers is transforming the cityscape, but each new build is quickly being overshadowed by the next. A survey last year found that many Londoners want curbs placed on the number of new high-rise buildings in the capital with concerns that the skyline is transforming too quickly.
There are over ten buildings 200m or taller, including Newfoundland, that will appear in the London skyline over the next few years, dwarfing some of the iconic buildings currently standing, such as The Gherkin (30 St Mary Axe). When it opened in 2004, the pickle-shaped building dominated the skyline, but the construction of new towers is quickly making it disappear from sight.
1 Undershaft
22 Bishops Gate
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