Jianxing, China
Responding to the latest developments in transportation technology, Ma Yansong and his team at MAD Architects have completed the restoration and expansion of the Jianxing train station in order to replace a dysfunctional structure that was used from 1995 until 2019.
According to the architects, this infrastructure project creates new spaces that are comfortable and easy to navigate for the passengers.
“We should rethink and redefine the spatial patterns of such transportation infrastructure buildings in China,” states Ma Yansong.
“We can break away from the common pursuit of grandiose monumental buildings and make them urban public spaces with transport functions, natural ecology, and cultural life, where citizens are happy to go, stay, meet, and enjoy.”
The new station is bright, efficient, and human-scaled, with a flood of natural light to create a friendly, comfortable environment.
The main transportation and commercial functions are to be located on the basement level, allowing the ground-floor space to be given back to nature.
A shared space between Jiaxing’s citizens and travelers, this new green urban center will transform into a “train station in the forest.”
Through careful transportation planning and vertical use of the space, MAD’s scheme accommodates the existing passenger demands for the station, while also allowing for future sustainable development and expansion.
The scheme’s emphasis on connecting with its surroundings will also serve to increase human activity and visitors to the area, enhance its commercial offering, and ultimately rejuvenate the old city center with a new vitality.
The capacity of the train station will be upgraded to three platforms serving six tracks, in contrast to the previous three platforms serving five tracks, with the main upline and downline becoming two arrival and departure tracks respectively.
The overall passenger capacity is expected to reach 5.28 million people per year, with peak-time capacity reaching 2,300 people per hour.
MAD Architects believes that a city’s best urban spaces should belong to everybody.
“Architecture, sunlight, nature, and fresh air should work in harmony to be shared by all; creating an environment where people can both live and travel with convenience, dignity, and comfort,” says the office.
Project: Jiaxing Train Station
Architects: MAD Architects
Lead Architects: Ma Yansong, Dang Qun, and Yosuke Hayano
Design Team : Cao Chen, Reinier Simons, Yao Ran, Fu Xiaoyi, Yu Lin, Chen Wei, He Shunpeng, Cheng Xiangju, Kaushik Raghuraman, Chen Nianhai, Deng Wei, Cao Xi, Sun Mingze, Huang Zhiyu, Zhang Kai, Li Zhengdong, Dayie Wu, Huai Wei, Claudia Hertrich, Liu Zifan, Xie Qilin, Alan Rodríguez Carrillo, Qiang Siyang, Hou Jinghui, Li Xinyun, Yin Jianfeng, Mathias Juul Frost, Lei Lei, and Lu Zihao
Structural Consultant: LERA Consulting Structural Engineers
Client: Jiaxing Modernservice Industry Development & Investment (Group) Co., Ltd.
Photographers: CreatAR Images, Su Shengliang, AC, and Aogvision
