Restructuring of the station square Cathedral

Cologne, Germany

Photo © Tomas Riehle

Photo © Ines Kaiser

Photo © Tomas Riehle

Architects: Schaller Partner GbR

Location: Bahnhofsvorplatz, 50667 Cologne, Germany
Year: 2006

The station square of the 70’s, thanks to excessive demands of traffic space, had severe urban deficiencies. A correction was possible when in the 90’s these demands were reduced. In a competition in 1998 we offered the concept of a 70m wide flight of steps leading up from the station square to the cathedral and the street level of the inner city. Because of the geometry of the urban space between cathedral and station this solution involved the elimination of one of two street tunnels thereby making room to develop the steps in total width of the station square. Thus the steps function as part of the urban space between cathedral and station rather than focusing on the northern portal of the cathedral. While in the 70’s one had tried to find an adequate answer to the architecture of the cathedral in functional structuring and rich geometrical patterns, it was our vision to free up space for the monumental cathedral. The plaza is cleared and a simple form is achieved by integrating the illumination and necessary facilities into the main structure. Everything must be subordinated to the gesture of a simple form.