In contemporary practice, metro stations are increasingly expanding beyond their transportation function to become multifunctional public spaces. They are conceived as complex nodes that serve as catalysts for urban regeneration in line with sustainable planning principles. Different international projects exemplify this trend, showcasing how architects design mobility spaces as public places for interaction, in dialogue with the local context.
One example is the Piazza Municipio metro station in Naples, designed by Álvaro Siza and Eduardo Souto de Moura. The project was driven by the need to incorporate a large-scale infrastructure within the historic urban fabric and to provide a pedestrian connection with the port. Excavations during construction revealed findings dating from the Hellenistic-Roman period to contemporary times. In line with the systemic strategy of combining architecture, art and archaeology within the stations, the architects designed the new mezzanine level by intersecting it with the segmented heritage context, shaping a new context-sensitive public space.
Taking a different perspective and considering the mobility space in connection with the intangible dimension of the place, the project by Benedetta Tagliabue (EMBT Architects) for the Clichy-Montfermeil metro station within the Paris Grand Express transport system is also relevant. The project is articulated as a driver of urban regeneration through a new architectural interpretation of the area. In line with recent developments in participatory urban processes, the architects organised a workshop with the local multiethnic communities to collaboratively define the appearance and characterisation of the new urban space with patterns inspired by their cultural expressions. The research explores how architects designed these new spaces as functional and spatial configurations of urban regeneration, intersecting them with the heritage and identity of the place.
Bibliography
- Addie, J.-P. D., Glass, M. R., & Nelles, J. (Eds.). (2024). Infrastructural times: Temporality and the making of global urban worlds (1st ed.). Bristol University Press. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.9692679
- Pucci, P., & Colleoni, M. (Eds.). (2016). Understanding mobilities for designing contemporary cities. Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22578-4
- Dell’Aira, P. V., Grimaldi, A., Guarini, P., & Lambertucci, F. (Eds.). (2015). Sottosuoli urbani: La progettazione della città che scende. Quodlibet. ISBN 9788874627141
