A Super Futuristic Net Zero High Speed Rail Station for Stuttgart

Originally designed back in 2007, <a href="http://www.bahnprojekt-stuttgart-ulm.de/en-gb/stuttgart-main-station-/default.aspx" target="_blank">Main Station Stuttgart</a>, was already incredibly forward thinking in terms of sustainability and green transportation. Back then, Stuttgart and Deutsche Bahn held a competition to design a <a href="http://inhabitat.com/2010/08/12/san-francisco-breaks-ground-on-green-transbay-transit-center/" target="_blank">new station</a> that could accommodate high speed rail, and the grand prize was taken by <a href="http://www.inhabitat.com/2010/05/11/european-investment-bank-wins-international-green-architecture-award/" target="_blank">Ingenhoven Architects</a>, whose design turned the tracks 90 degrees and place them underground in order to create a massive new park in the city center. As for sustainability, huge skylights and light wells pump natural daylighting down onto the subterranean tracks, and with the use of photovoltaics on a nearby building, the whole complex is virtually net zero.

The new station, which is expected to be complete by 2016, will be pushed 12 meters underground.

Pushing the tracks underground will free up a large space in the city center that will be converted into more public park space.

The tracks will be turned perpendicular to the existing tracks and will go under the current main building of the station, and that way new space will be available for additional development.

The new park space will extend into the adjacent Shlossgarten or castle gardens, which are like green lungs for the city center.

Large, circular, "light eyes" installed on the roof of the station will pull natural daylight into the subterranean tracks.

These light eyes have operable windows and work in conjunction with ventilation tubes to draw fresh air into the space, eliminating the need for mechanical ventilation.

This cross section of the tracks and rail platform show the ventilation tubes and light eyes. At night lighting will be shown out through the tubes.

This side cross section shows one of the main entrances to the train station in relationship to the existing rail building. Additional passageways connect the rail station to the subway network.

The additional park space that will open up on top of the station will hopefully invigorate the city center.

The new station will have 8 underground tracks that connect to the European High Speed Rail Network.

The project by Ingenhoven Architects won a Global Holcim Award in 2006. It was originally designed in 1997.

The existing Stuttgart station has one way in and one way out forcing trains to back out when they leave.

The new station's smart design allows trains to pass through the city more efficiently.