Project
King Abdullah Financial District Metro Station
Zaha Hadid Architects
Location: Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Date: 2012 / 2017
Client: ArRiyadh Development Authority
The King Abdullah Financial District (KAFD) Metro Station will serve as a key interchange on the new Riyadh Metro network for Line 1, as well as the terminus of Line 4 (for passengers to the airport) and Line 6. The local monorail can also be accessed from the station via a skybridge. With six platforms over four public floors and two levels of underground car parking, the KAFD Metro Station will be integrated within the urban context of the financial district, responding to the functional requirements of a multimodal transport centre and the district’s future vision. The project extends beyond the simple station typology to emphasize the building’s importance as a dynamic, multi-functional public space; not only an intermediate place perceived through quick transitions, but also a dramatic public space for the city.
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The design places the station at the centre of a network of pathways, skybridges
and metro lines envisaged by the KAFD master plan. Connectivity diagrams and
traffic across the site have been mapped and structured to clearly delineate
the pedestrian routes within the building, optimize internal circulation and
avoid congestion.
The resulting configuration is a threedimensional lattice defined by a sequence
of opposing sine-waves (generated from the repetition and frequency variation
of station’s daily traffic flows) which act as the spine for the building’s
circulation. These sine-waves are extended to the station’s envelope and
strictly affiliated to its internal layout, translating the architectural
concept to the exterior.
The façade patterning reduces solar gain while it’s geometric perforations
contextualize the station within its cultural environment. The overall
composition resembles patterns generated by desert winds in sand dunes, where
multiple frequencies and repetition generate complex natural formations.
The King Abdullah Financial Disctrict Metro Station applies a discrete subset
of elements which are correlated through repetition, symmetry and scaling;
optimizing the design while simplify technical challenges without compromising
spatial quality or design ambition.
Design
Zaha Hadid Architects
Project Director
Gianluca Racana
Filippo Innocenti
Project Architect
Fulvio Wirz
Gian Luca Barone
Design Team:
Alexandre Kuroda
Fei Wang
Lisa Kinnerud
Jorge Mendez-Caceres
Structural Engineer: Buro Happold
Services: Buro Happold
Transport and Civil Engineering: Buro Happold
Fire Engineering: Buro Happold
Façade Consultan: NewTecnic
Cost Consultant
Davis Langdon
Size: 20,434 m2
Levels
4 above ground
2 below ground (car parking)
Metro Lines served
Line 1
Line 4
Line 6
Skybridge access to monorail
(6 train plattforms)
