UNStudio and b720 Arquitectos, in collaboration with engineering firm Esteyco, were selected to deliver the integral remodeling for Madrid-Chamartín Clara Campoamor Station and its urban integration. Among the proposals submitted by the world's leading architecture firms, the winning design was chosen for its integral program of efficiency, sustainability, and inclusivity. As "Europe's largest urban regeneration project," the railway hub will extend 2.3 million square meters to become an international benchmark in the Spanish Capital.
The new Madrid-Chamanrtin Station will be an "open window" welcoming travelers and citizens and a porous extension to the new parks on either side of the complex. Dubbed 'Open ecosystem,' the project is defined by a permeable skin of stepped urban terraces and curtain walls sheltered by the historical brick vaults from 1975. The roof restoration was a crucial element in the proposed design, as an identifying element and in recognition of the station as an iconic landmark on the northern side of the city. Offices and flexible administrative spaces will be located in three towers to manage historical elements independently.
Two multipurpose and flexible terminals will define railway functionality, opening the possibility for the railway complex future expansion. A central hall will facilitate a direct route to long-distance services independent of short-trip routes to double the capacity of the high-speed rail and the passenger lobby. In addition, a track will connect to Barajas International Airport, and a series of urban platforms will transfer within different transport systems, such as taxis, metro, and active mobility (pedestrians, bicycles, scooters).
Our main focus was to retain and improve the existing station complex and to activate its surroundings with a careful mix of fast and slow programme; to design a highly sustainable future-proof urban hub, while densifying and truly activating the area with working, living, leisure and learning.- Ben van Berkel, principal architect of UNStudio
The mega project has a budget of 29 million EUR and will be delivered in phases to respond to the railway's high traffic and preservation protocols. According to the juries, constructability, feasibility, and efficiency was the central aspect of the selected proposal, following functionality - railway, commercial and tertiary, accessibility and integration into the city, environmental sustainability, and inclusivity. Other shortlisted teams included AECOM, BIG, Foster + Partners, Estudio Herreros, OMA, Zaha Hadid Architects, Grimshaw, RSHP, and Souto de Moura.
UNStudio recently commissioned a tower in Germany which aims to be one of Germany's most sustainable office buildings; the dutch-based practice is also working with Groß & Partner on the currently under-construction FOUR project in Frankfurt, one of the densest inner-city developments in Europe. In Parallel, the Spanish-based B720 Arquitectos is transforming Azca Financial District in Madrid. In collaboration with Diller Scofidio + Renfro and GB+P, the project will provide an urban, economic, and social revitalization of the area and much-needed public space in the center of Madrid, welcoming everyone and offering diverse programming.
