The site of the Old Oak Common interchange station is to the north of Wormwood Scrubs and the south of Willesden Junction in West London, alongside the existing Great Western Main Line.

The new High Speed 2 station at Old Oak Common is planned to act as a catalyst for the regeneration of this neglected part of West London, acting as a gateway to the development of a new neighbourhood adjacent to the site, creating tens of thousands of new homes, and integrated into the local area through urban design that maximises green space and the station's connection with local bus, cycling and walking routes.

A 25,000 m2 (270,000 sq ft) atrium roof, inspired by the site's industrial heritage, will link the two halves of the station, and carry solar panels.

[5] To overcome the site's limited access along the single-carriageway Old Oak Common Lane, and reduce lorry movements across London, a 1 km (0.62-mile)-long conveyor belt was assembled to transport the excavated material to Willesden Euro Terminal railhead, to be removed by rail freight and then recycled.

[11] The following table illustrates the planned range of services, based on current DfT documentation on the station, additional proposed serves are described in the following sub-sections.

An early report prepared in 2011 for the Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham by Terry Farrell & Partners explored several interchange possibilities and proposed the construction of an overhead light rail, automated people mover or personal rapid transit system linking "Old Oak Central" [sic] with North Acton, Kensal Green and Willesden Junction stations.

[15] Network Rail has proposed that the Chiltern Main Line should have a second terminal at Old Oak Common to increase capacity on the route as there is no room to expand the station at Marylebone.

[26] Although the 2010 DfT proposal for HS2 outlined a number of other possible transport links at Old Oak Common, including the addition of a direct link with the High Speed 1 route to Mainland European services via the Channel Tunnel, it was removed following the Higgins Review [27] Services operated by Southern running between Watford Junction and East Croydon pass through the Old Oak Common site.

Network Rail's London and South East Route Utilisation Strategy published in 2011 examines the possibility of constructing a chord through the Old Oak Common area to connect Crossrail to the West Coast Main Line.

While the Conservative/Liberal Democrat administration supported the HS2 project, the Conservative Party has indicated a preference to an alternative proposal, put forward by Arup, for the HS2 line to go directly to a hub station at Heathrow Airport.

[34] When asked about a High Speed Rail / Crossrail interchange at Old Oak Common, the Transport Secretary Philip Hammond stated "Lug your heavy bags down a couple of escalators along 600 m of corridor and then change trains at a wet suburban station somewhere in north west London.

[36] Lord Mawhinney, a former Conservative MP for Peterborough concluded that the London High Speed 2 terminus should be at Old Oak Common, not at Euston.

[37] In summer 2011, Hammersmith and Fulham launched a wider 'Park Royal City' plan for Old Oak Common, including light rail or personal rapid transit lines to the surrounding areas.