Stockholm Central Station

In 2008, Jernhusen asked us to modernize and develop large parts of Stockholm’s Central Station. As one of Sweden’s most important crossroads, the station needed to handle both current and future demands. The growing number of travelers made this especially crucial. With many separate improvements required, we had the chance to create a comprehensive development concept. This allowed us to approach the project holistically and ensure a cohesive transformation.

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

”Our vision was to improve the experience of the visitors through modernization and design that exceeded their expectations and at the same time preserve and highlight the fine qualities of the old building”

Mark Humphreys, Chief Architect

A meeting place that offers the unexpected

Jernhusen wanted Stockholm’s Central station to fulfil its potential as a meeting place for people from around the world. A modern travel centre with exceptional service, shops and restaurants that is safe, easy to navigate, accessible and where the environment and the details make a lasting impression on the visitors. To translate Jernhusen’s vision required a holistic approach but we also saw the opportunity to define some special areas that offer the visitors unexpected experiences.

It has been said that one of the easiest ways of judging a building is by visiting its toilets. To design very nice toilets felt obvious to us. Inspired by the romantic, Swedish landscape motifs that are painted on the walls of the Central Hall, we wanted to enhance the experience of being a traveller here too. With accents of wood, white glass and the picture of a sparkling fireplace, the design of the toilets is an abstraction of winter in the mountains – the cottages, snow and ice.

Art, movement, and new meeting places

To let new art enhance places that would otherwise be boring and dead also offers something unexpected. We chose to decorate the empty space between the new stairs and the escalators that today lead from the north hall up to the City terminal. We were looking for a dynamic and digital experience and the choice was the artists Bigert and Bergström. Their installation, which shows tomorrows weather through atmospheric molecules of various colour were developed in consultation with us so that it can relate to the architecture in a seamless manner.

The third aspect is the new serving spaces. In the north hall, we designed a calm area which all guests can use, screened off through a low white wall from white composite material offering an open visual sight line both for the navigability and for security reasons.

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

Photo: Åke E:son Lindman

Structural limitations – creative solutions

Stockholm’s commuters will likely notice the biggest change beneath the Central Hall. We initiated the development of these spaces, working within the existing structural constraints. Since much of the structure is load-bearing, we had to stay within the original dimensions. Instead of altering the layout, we focused on creating a new and positive experience for travelers. Through a series of architectural strategies, we transformed the space without expanding it.

The streamlined environment, without sharp edges and corners, creating natural flows that leads the travellers on.

We wanted to create a light, airy and calming environment but could not change neither the width of the passage nor the height of the ceilings. A smooth, new fixed ceiling in white that softly arches up towards the Ring (the famous opening in the joists that connect the surface with the Central Hall above) and round recessed light sources that give the ceiling a hollow effect became part of the solution. Circle symbolism contained in the ring design is also found, for example, in the contrast marking of the windows and the rounded corners on the surface of new wall sections. The streamlined environment, without sharp edges and corners, creating natural flows that leads the travellers on.

To bring in as much natural light as possible and improve intuitive wayfinding, we enhanced vertical connections. We added two new openings, allowing stairs and escalators to lead up to the Central Hall. We also opened up existing load-bearing walls as much as possible. By setting the retail spaces one meter back from the main passage, we created a more open and spacious shopping area.

Minimalist details enhance the listed building

We set out to highlight the original qualities of the Central Hall. The remaining parts of the Central Station from 1871, including the hall itself, are listed buildings. This meant we could not alter or distort the space. To respect the heritage, we took a minimalist approach. We worked with glass and slender steel details to introduce major changes while preserving the original atmosphere.

New shops and restaurants now fill the space, offering a wide range of products tailored to travelers’ needs. As architects, we advised on which commercial players should be given space. We also developed a detailed design manual for tenants, drawing inspiration from one of the station’s historic shop signs.