Neither the dictator Primo de Rivera nor the Republic saw the materialization of the dream of a hub in the north of the capital that would untangle the city’s rail network. This was not achieved until the years of Francoist developmentalism, when Corrales & Molezún built the station in Madrid’s Charmatín district, crowning it with barrel vaults. Rather excluded from Spain’s high-speed plans and eclipsed by Atocha and its additions downtown, the northern terminal has nevertheless gotten attention of late, finding itself at the core of Madrid Nuevo Norte, a real-estate operation already underway. While the schemes for office and residential buildings get finalized, the task of burying the train tracks has begun, freeing up land for a park jointly designed by West 8 and Porras Guadiana, and a proposal has been unveiled that will turn the 1970s station into a cutting-edge, multimodal, and sustainable complex. UNStudio, b720, and Esteyco will make it accommodate evolving transport services, incorporate service-sector uses in terraced blocks, and cut a figure in the area through a recognizable image of half-cylinder marquees.
Competition finalists
Técnica y Proyectos, Grimshaw Architects and Rubio Arquitectura
Técnica y Proyectos, Grimshaw Architects and Rubio Arquitectura
Técnica y Proyectos, Grimshaw Architects and Rubio Arquitectura
WSP Spain-Apia, Saitec, Souto Moura-Arquitectos, Mangado y Asociados, and Ezquiaga Arquitectura, Sociedad y Territorio
WSP Spain-Apia, Saitec, Souto Moura-Arquitectos, Mangado y Asociados, and Ezquiaga Arquitectura, Sociedad y Territorio
WSP Spain-Apia, Saitec, Souto Moura-Arquitectos, Mangado y Asociados, and Ezquiaga Arquitectura, Sociedad y Territorio
TPF Getinsa Euroestudios, Ines Ingenieros Consultores, Nexo Arquitectura and OMA Internacional
TPF Getinsa Euroestudios, Ines Ingenieros Consultores, Nexo Arquitectura and OMA Internacional
TPF Getinsa Euroestudios, Ines Ingenieros Consultores, Nexo Arquitectura and OMA Internacional
