A GATEWAY TO DESIGN
04 Nov 2019
Køge Nord Station in Copenhagen, Denmark, has officially been opened, providing a stunning new transportation landmark that features a spectacular futuristic footbridge, which acts as the gateway to the new precinct.
Designed by COBE and DISSING+WEITLING Architecture, the transit hub features a futuristic 225-metre-long covered footbridge that connects the new double-track high-speed rail line between Copenhagen and the city of Ringsted with the existing commuter urban-suburban S-train line. The nine-metre-wide footbridge spans the width of the Køge Bugt Highway and is punctuated with multiple windows to provide 180-degree panoramic views of the highway and the cultural landscape. 
Completed in less than three years after its groundbreaking, the Køge Nord Station is the result of an international competition that drew 38 submissions from around the world. Described by COBE and DISSING+WEITLING Architecture as a “unique example of Danish architecture and engineering,” the firms’ winning design includes a vision plan, a train station, parking and transit facilities and the project’s crown jewel — the eye-catching covered footbridge. Installed in six sections, the footbridge is clad in 48,000 square metres of anodised aluminium panels and can carry up to 1800 people. 
To provide a comfortable and attractive commuter experience for the 8000 passengers expected to use the station daily, the interior of the covered bridge is lined with timber and emphasises a sense of continuous flow with curvaceous lines and open views to the north as well as with smaller south-facing apertures in the interior wood panels.
“People spend many hours of their life in transit,” said Jesper B. Henriksen, architect and partner at DISSING+WEITLING architecture, “that's why we sought to give the footbridge a quality that goes beyond the purely functional and practical. The interior space is covered with wooden slats that provide a warm, tactile experience in transit and waiting situations. It is, quite simply, a welcoming and inviting space, unlike what you often see in stations and transport facilities. The interior space is contrasted by the smooth, cool aluminium exterior that enters into a dialogue with the infrastructural expression of the place.” 
Via Inhabitat | Photography by Rasmus Hjortshøj – COAST via COBE
