Putney’s railway arches are TfL’s next target for redevelopment under a strategy that has already forced the closure of long-established businesses across London.
Under the new ‘Our Arches Plan’, the brick spaces underneath the District Line from East Putney to Putney Bridge station have been identified for regeneration as part of a wider strategy to more than double rental income across TfL’s 800-arch portfolio.
TfL insists the plan will support small businesses through improved safety and accessibility. But traders across London tell a different story.
Putney business already under pressure
For traders in Putney these plans are more than just numbers on a spreadsheet. Several businesses we have spoken to describe feeling stress, fear and uncertainty for what lies ahead. Many spoke to us on condition of anonymity because they are concerned about the risk of retribution from their landlord.
Several traders in arches on the Fulham side of the river have already been told to vacate by 2027, while those on the Putney side are experiencing unreasonable rent demands and intensified inspections.
One owner, who has worked in the arches for over a decade, described to us how TfL left their business without water for nearly two months. It required Thames Water to confirm it was TfL’s responsibility before the issue was fixed but by that point the damage had already been done. The same business reported increased inspections, focusing on pre-existing structural issues including a crack in a door frame which had been there for more than 25 years. It ultimately ended in terms of eviction.
A different owner had to shut down parts of their business because they couldn’t justify repairing a £200,000 piece of specialist equipment which was a key part of everyday operations.
“There’s no point investing if you don’t know where you’re going,” they told Putney.news. “People already think we’ve closed which is bad for business.”
More traders describe living in limbo, uncertain whether they will still have their business by the end of the year, and said TfL’s communication has been nothing short of shocking.
One told Putney News they spent more than £250,000 bringing their arch up to standard, covering structural deficiencies and safety upgrades – without any financial support from TfL.
When describing their interactions with TfL representatives, Putney’s arch businesses have told us the same thing: it’s clear the company no longer values the skilled trades and is seeking to replicate a model of gentrification similar to that at Battersea Power Station.
When directly asked if this was the case, TFL declined to comment, and instead reiterated its focus is on refurbishing the arches.
To date, two businesses have been evicted after they were warned about safety breaches which “were not addressed”.
Why railway arches matter
Railway arches have been a lifeline for London’s small businesses since Victorian times. Built to carry trains overhead, these spaces beneath the tracks were once considered marginal, unwanted corners of the city. But that’s exactly why they became essential.
Research by University College London found [pdf] that railway arches host a disproportionate amount of manufacturing: 23% of arch businesses are engaged in making or producing goods, compared to just 10% of London businesses overall. They’re home to car mechanics, metalworkers, taxi services, light industrial firms – businesses that need affordable space and can tolerate the noise and vibration of trains rumbling overhead.
Mayor Sadiq Khan himself has praised this ecosystem. Speaking about railway arch businesses, he called them “seedbeds of innovation and future talent,” saying “the creativity it leads to is really exciting” and describing them as “that sort of creative hub” in London.
But as property values rise, what was once considered undesirable has become prime real estate. Traditional trades are being squeezed out by businesses that can pay more: craft breweries, trendy coffee shops, creative studios. The gentrification of railway arches isn’t just changing what’s underneath – it’s changing who can afford to work there.
The 10 year plan to double income
TfL is a multi-billion pound corporation and it pledged in October 2025 to increase gross rental income from its arches estate from £12m to £28m by 2032.
The plan frames regeneration as a route to ‘long-term value’ with priority sites identified based on rental potential and vacancy levels. Putney Bridge Station has now been placed high up on that list.
The plan is being executed through Places for London (PfL), TfL’s commercial property arm which was established to maximise revenue from the 800 arches. It’s the same subsidiary that has already forced out long-established businesses elsewhere in London.
In a statement to Putney.news, a PfL spokesperson said the Putney Bridge arches “form a key part of our wider arches plan”, adding that they are “investing to improve the condition of the arches estate, making the estate safer, more sustainable and enjoyable for all.”
Similar plans have ended in removal not renewal and now Putney’s traders are in the same firing line.
The 40-year business that TfL forced out despite protests
JC Motors served the community in the East End of London for over 40 years. Run by Len Maloney, it had operated from the same arch since the 1980s. In 2015, TfL told him it was planning to increase his annual rent from £22,000 to between £72,000 and £84,000 – more than tripling it overnight.
Maloney didn’t accept it quietly. He created a petition that gathered more than 2,500 signatures, which was delivered to the London Mayor, and a second 10,000 signature petition that he delivered to 10 Downing Street. The campaign gained national and local media coverage, including from the BBC and ITV. Hackney Council publicly supported him, with the mayor personally recognising Maloney’s contribution to the community through training and mentoring young people, many from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds.
Despite this pressure, TfL tripled the rent in 2017.
Maloney co-founded Guardians of the Arches, a tenants’ association representing hundreds of railway arch businesses across London. They launched a crowdfunding campaign to purchase three arches – including JC Motors – and put them into a Community Land Trust that would guarantee affordable rents forever.
TfL argues they had offered £45,000 in pandemic rent support, relocation to a smaller arch in Mile End for half the price, or for JC Motors to pay the arrears which by then has reached £112,000.
JC Motors was evicted in November 2024. The arch remains empty to this day.
Across the city the same issues have repeated themselves. Tripspace, a yoga and dance studio also located in the Haggerston arches, were threatened with displacement after they were ordered by TFL to pay thousands of pounds for a renewed lease.
The business started a crowdfunder seeking donations from locals to help fund a six-month deposit of £25,500. Director Giuliana Majo described the increase as far outpacing the community’s income, forcing staff to work unsociable hours and take on multiple shifts and jobs just to keep the doors open.
Local business groups, such as the East End Trades Guild – an alliance of 400 small businesses – argue TfL’s approach is pushing out small businesses and creativity in the community. Guild director Krissie Nicolson warned that small firms are no longer seen as sufficient profit drivers despite being key contributors over the years to local culture and economies.
Are PfL really for London?
The JC Motors story reveals TfL’s playbook. First massive rent increases justified as “market value.” Then accumulating arrears. Then offers of “constructive assistance” – relocation to less suitable premises, and payment plans that don’t address fundamental unaffordability. And finally, eviction.
Even when businesses fight back with petitions, media coverage, political support, and community organising, TfL has shown it will push ahead with its revenue targets. After the JC Motors eviction, a Places for London spokesperson said they had “reluctantly taken the decision not to renew” the lease – as if 40 years of community service and massive public support counted for nothing against financial projections.
For Putney businesses now identified as “priority assets,” the question isn’t whether they can negotiate with TfL; it’s whether they can organise to stop what happened in Haggerston from happening here too. Putney is already experiencing high rent demands, intensified inspections, and what multiple sources describe as TfL’s complete lack of empathy.
Putney.news will be investigating this story over the coming weeks. If you’re a railway arch business affected by Places for London’s “Our Arches Plan,” contact us at news@putney.news. We’ll be speaking to more businesses, examining TfL’s financial pressures, and exploring what, if anything, can be done to protect Putney’s traditional traders before they suffer the same fate as JC Motors.
Thank you for this story. While we understand that TFL has a need to maximize rents from the arches, there should be some recognition of businesses that have for decades been operating in these spaces and are important to the fabric of our community. I am heartsick to think that the iconic Physical Culture, continuing the ‘Putney Barbell Club’ tradition dating back to 1928, will be forced out of its space. This affordable gym, if lost, will be sorely missed.
Very happy to see you highlighting the plight of those renting railway arches. Thank you. A week or so ago I had a long conversation with Norman Chitrin who runs Fabweld, a metalwork engineering company,.
He was a lovely man who did a small job for me, for which he would take nothing. (It was five minutes for him but impossible for me). It was heartbreaking and frustrating to hear him speak about TfL and the uncertainty of his future and the threat of the demise of his business.
Additionally, he faces a conflict of interest with the Pavilion development opposite him, a substantial development from Jon Hunt (founder of Foxtons) who has complained about the businesses under the arches lower the tone of the area and has built a high fence to block them from view. The irony is that some “huts” have now been built which mimic the shape of the arches!
People and businesses like his are not only essential but serve to create the character and social history of the area.
This is either a bare faced lie by TFL or the most stupid strategy. They have been doing the same in Fulham. Quite aside from the fact that they are putting long established, local, useful good businesses out of business and work, who exactly do they think will move into them? These arches are perfect for the existing businesses, small, little light, cold often damp, inconvenient for passing trade but perfect, for example, for a car repair business. Who will move in? The businesses that aren’t moving into closed restaurants and coffee shops and bars in the King’s Rd, Putney High St etc? Of course not the premises simply aren’t right for this businesses that why they have never competed with the existing ones. In 2 years time the vast majority of these will still be empty, zero income and the people at TFL who have come up with this idea will continue to defend it as they are too ignorant and mule headed to ever admit they are wrong.
The bigger issue is that the foundations of some of these are really potentially life threatening. Serious water leaks and damp under the underground bridge on the Fulham side and TFL do nothing. They should be spending their time making sure the bridges and arches are safe.
It’s really encouraging to see that there are people such as Alexia who are prepared to highlight issues that affect local people and local businesses. Exposing the what appears to be underhanded behaviour of organisations such as TFL who continue to ruin the life’s of people who work hard to support their families and the community.
It’s time to stand up and support people like Len Maloney and other who are fighting hard to make a positive difference for our collective futures.
Difficult one. TfL have to find the money from somewhere to pay off the RMT strikers.