Jean Nouvel and leading French architects call massive Gare du Nord overhaul in Paris 'unacceptable'

2019-09-05T01:00:00-04:00

A group of leading French architects have denounced a plan to renovate the Gare du Nord, one of Paris’s main train stations, calling the designs that would turn the station into a glassy, mammoth, restaurant-filled shopping mall “indecent,” “absurd” and “unacceptable.”

Plans to drastically expand and modernize Paris's foremost train station were unveiled in 2018 with a commitment to meet the increased travel volume during the Olympic Summer Games in 2024 and cope with the more complex arrival procedures of British nationals in the post-Brexit era.

An open letter signed by leading architectural figures, including Pritzker Prize laureate Jean Nouvel, now sharply rebukes the renovation plan.

Image: Valode et Pistre.

"Forcing hundreds of thousands of people to walk through commercial spaces becomes unbearable when this gift to trade goes with long and unnecessarily complicated journeys," recites the New York Times a section of the letter which was published in Le Monde this week. "This project is unacceptable and we demand a rethink from floor to rafters."

Paris Gare du Nord station to triple in size to prepare for Brexit and Olympics travel demands

2018-07-16T14:49:00-04:00

France’s rail operator SNCF has unveiled plans to triple the size of Paris’ Gare du Nord station in time for the 2024 Olympic Games. [...] The project, carried out in partnership with developer Ceetrus and architect Denis Valode of Valode et Pistre, will be the largest refurbishment of the station since it was built in 1864. When complete it should increase the capacity of Europe’s largest station from 700,000 to 800,000 people a day.

Image: Valode et Pistre.

Besides accommodating an increase in travel volume during the 2024 Olympic Games, the dramatic expansion of Paris' Gare du Nord terminus station is also preparing necessary spaces for new arrival procedures of British nationals in the post-Brexit era: (soon) no longer EU citizens, UK passengers arriving via the Eurostar train from London will have to undergo yet to be determined immigration and customs inspections. Since dedicated platforms have to be physically walled off from others—treating it like a national border—upgrading transportation facilities to meet the requirements of UK authorities has proven challenging at other European train stations, such as Amsterdam and Rotterdam.

Image: Valode et Pistre.

Construction of the Valode et Pistre-designed expansion is expected to be completed by 2024 in time for the Paris Summer Olympics.

Archinect - News

Jean Nouvel and leading French architects call massive Gare du Nord overhaul in Paris 'unacceptable'

Paris Gare du Nord station to triple in size to prepare for Brexit and Olympics travel demands