Birmingham New Street station was officially opened to passengers at the weekend, boasting an iconic new-look station after its £750 million, five-year transformation.

The investment is at the heart of the government’s plans to build a healthier, balanced economy, shifting the focus away from London and into the Midlands. Chancellor George Osborne said, “We are committed to building the Midlands engine, which is set to boost growth by attracting local jobs and investment. The new station shows we are delivering on our long-term economic plan for the region.”

New Street station is one of Britain’s busiest railway interchanges, dealing with more than 170,000 passengers every day. The new-look station is now five times the size of London’s Euston and has bigger platforms, improved entrances and better facilities, including 43 shops at concourse level and the Grand Central shopping complex, which will house the UK’s largest John Lewis department store.

With the new station comes more investment in commercial property, with big name banks moving into the city, including HSBC and Deutsche Bank. It is expected that £1 billion of commercial property will change hands by the end of 2015. The value of residential property in the area is also set to rise with the arrival of the station, good news for property investors in the region.