Playing with natural light, emphasizing the unique character of the beam network.

The new metro line planned in Budapest is to connect South-Buda with the city center.10 stations will be constructed in the first phase. Fővám tér station is on the left side of the Danube river.

Only a complex structural system could fulfil the requirements emerging from the proximity of the Danube and the given construction site. For that reason, “FŐVÁM TÉR” station is composed of a cut-and-cover box and tunnels.

The complexity of the structure is even greater, since here a new tunnel for the tramline and a new pedestrian subway has to be constructed, as well. Having the new underground station, Fővám tér will become a new gateway of the historic downtown of Pest.

The station is divided into two main structural parts as well as two separate building methods. There is a box structure built through an open pit from the surface. Work pits are supported by slurry or pile walls. The other part of the station is under an existing building, built using NAT methods.

The box is supported by three levels of reinforced concrete beams, the structure of which will be similar to a net. There are three layers of this network, which keep the walls of the box like a bone-structure. The design of the box is determined by this concrete net-structure. In the other part the tunnels have a curved cross section. The walls and the columns will be covered with printed ceramic tiles of the artwork type, reflecting to the Zsolnay ceramics of the Gellért hotel, which is nearby the site.

Due to the construction technology, huge rooms have been created in the inner spaces of the stations. The section of the space is proportional to the cross section of the average street in Pest, built in the eclectic period in the 19th century, so the station can be interpreted as a inverse street or square under the surface.

Playing with natural light has been an important aspect in the architectural formation of the entire line. The main goal is –apart from giving enough light of course- to concentrate on the interior design and show the architectural forming as much as possible. On the surface of Fővám tér a huge square will be created without traffic. This will allow of locating glassy, crystalloid skylights, which will let the sunlight reach the platform level, emphasizing the unique character of the beam network.

ARCHITECT: sporaarchitects, Budapest, Hungary, www.sporaarchitects.hu. LOCATION: center of Budapest, Quay of River Danube, Hungary. DESCRIPTION: Underground Station / Infrastructure. STATUS: under construction. AREA: 7100 sqm. DESIGN TEAM: sporaarchitects Ltd. – Tibor Dékány, Sándor Finta, Ádám Hatvani, Orsolya Vadász. PROJECT TEAM: Zsuzsa Balogh, Attilla Korompay, Bence Várhidi, Noémi Soltész, András Jánosi, Diána Molnár. GENERAL DESIGN: Palatium Studió. PHOTOES: Tamás Bujnovszky. DATE: to be completed by 2012.
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