Køge North Station
A landmark for public transport in Greater Copenhagen
Køge North Station strengthens the public transport and green mobility, and the design signals the pleasure of travel joy and movement with its futuristic-looking pedestrian bridge.
- Location
- Køge, Denmark
- Category
- Public Spaces and Stations, Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridges
- Year
- 2014 - 2019
- Client
- BaneDanmark, DSB, Municipality of Køge
- Collaborators
- COBE / COWI
- Size
- 225 m
- Awards
- International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering (IABSE), The Construction Award 2019 // Prix Versailles World Finale 2020, Special prize Exterior Passenger Stations 2020 // Mies van der Rohe Award 2022 nominee // One of the World's Most Beautiful Passenger Stations, Prix Versailles - the World Architecture and Design Award at UNESCO 2023
- Photographer
- Rasmus Hjortshøj - COAST Studio
“If Køge North Station represents the standard for station building in the 21st century, we are at the threshold of a new proud era in public transport.”
– Architectural Editor, Politiken
Køge North Station takes people efficiently to and from the Danish capital. As a transit pathway it allows users to move seamlessly from car to foot to high-speed rail and thereby it embraces the multimodality of green commuting.
Køge Nord Station is part of the expansion of the European rail network, whereby high-speed trains will connect Denmark with Germany and the rest of Europe. Open prospects and intimacy
The station's striking pedestrian bridge of 225 metres links the new, double-track railway for high-speed trains between Copenhagen and Ringsted with the existing S-train line across Køge Bay Motorway.
The architecture stimulates the good travel experience by creating both open prospects and intimacy; movement and zones for taking a break. The bridge is shaped as a long, curved tube with a slanting cut at each end. To the south, the facade serves as a sun cover, while the northern side is open with a 180-degree panoramic view.
Catalyst for urban development
Køge Kommune has envisioned the station to stimulate the local economy, unlock regional prosperity and to be a dynamic gateway to Copenhagen for more than the 90,000 people passing through the area daily.
Universal Design: Social value beyond accessibility
Køge Nord Station is a social sustainability driver: as a transit hub, the station provides access to sustainable urban mobility for a wide spectrum of users – and ensures easy access to economic and educational opportunity, as well as health services. By promoting alternatives to car commuting, the station also inspires greater wellbeing by reducing sedentary behavior.
From a building regulations perspective, the station performs well with regard to accessibility performance – however the nature of the
architecture goes further. Embracing Universal Design principles – Køge Nord Station is a designed environment ensuring as many users as possible can access the site.Viewing Køge Nord through the lens of Universal Design reinforces the interconnectivity between social, economic, and environmental value creation. Køge Nord Station plays a critical role in providing a pathway to adoption of less fossil-fuel intensive methods of transportation. The ease and dynamism of the user experience nudges citizens to adopt green transport alternatives.
In addition to the station and the pedestrian bridge, the construction consists of a green area with bicycle and car parking. Long-lasting impact
In considering a wide spectrum of users, the station facilitates greater social cohesion for travelers. Just as the station function anticipates and supports a spectrum of mobility methods – the architecture anticipates and supports the full spectrum of human user accessibility. This in turn ensures Køge Nord Station is socially resilient infrastructure, with a promise of long-lasting impact for the community.
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