The £550m scheme delivers the biggest transformation in the 160-year history of the Grade-I listed King's Cross station and marks the completion of yet another key transport upgrade for the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

It takes the total investment in transport infrastructure in the King’s Cross area in the last ten years up to £2.5bn.

This spectacular project is a result of strong partnerships forged between Network Rail, train operators, the local council, architects, suppliers and English Heritage. It is also playing a key role as an economic catalyst, with a number of high profile businesses announcing plans to move to the newly redeveloped area around the station.

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To complement the wider improvements, King's Cross St. Pancras London Underground station was upgraded with a New Northern ticket hall funded by the Mayor, Transport for London and the Government. Opened in late 2009, it has provided a big increase in capacity, cutting congestion and improving accessibility.

More than 45m passengers a year travelling through London, and to and from destinations as far afield as Newcastle, Edinburgh and York will benefit from a raft of improvements.

A stunning new roof structure has been cleverly blended with the station’s heritage to create a space for passengers that is three times larger than the current concourse, with improved links to both the London Underground network and St Pancras station. A wide range of improved facilities include:

•Better lighting

•Larger destination boards

•Clearer station announcements

•More shops and restaurants

A further phase of development to a different area of King’s Cross station will complete in Autumn 2013. As well as restoring the station’s double barrel roof and famous clock tower, engineers will remove the eyesore 1970s green canopy on Euston Road to reveal Lewis Cubitt's original façade and create a new public space the size of Leicester Square.

(CD/GK)