Trainspotting 2012: Travel, leisure, and everyday life in Hong Kong

The train terminal typology has experienced little functional change since its European origin in the early 1800s. While constant technological and material advancements have drastically altered the appearance of the terminal, the basic components have remained relatively constant. Even recent, seemingly complex stations can be distilled down to the basic components of arrival/departure platforms, ticketing halls and train sheds. While many modern intermodal transport hubs have capitalized on the commercial opportunities from the vast passenger flow in stations by incorporating programs such as hotels and shopping malls into the design, the inherent temporality of the station typology remains. Modern cities require increasing numbers of inter-city rail terminals to be built near their cores in order to connect with local transportation networks. If the train station is becoming more integrated into the urban city core, it should evolve from a transitory interchange into a more permanent urban institution. This project advances a new railway station as an urban hub for Hong Kong. Organized as a block-wide complex, it offers a new horizontal datum to counter the "podium and tower" typical of the city's development. The station is host to a series of large-scale programs aimed at enriching the everyday life of Kowloon West.