Santiago Calatrava’s expensive Mons train station finally opens

Tomorrow, the first train will enter Mons’ renovated station with its new ‘Gare-Passerelle,’ or walkway station. The new footbridge, an 182-meter-long metal structure weighing 5,200 tons, is the eye-catcher of the building designed by the famous Spanish architect Calatrava.

The official inauguration, in turn, is scheduled for January 31, 2025. The imposing project was delayed for ten years and cost 480 million euros. The modernization of the Mons station began in 2001, but the project had a complicated evolution and long delays. Initially, a simple footbridge and an above-ground parking lot were planned for a budget of 37 million euros.

Ten years of delay

However, the project’s scope evolved into an architectural and intermodal station designed by Spanish star architect Santiago Calatrava, also known from the Liège-Guillemins railway station.

The imposing project, which includes underground parking garages with 862 spaces for cars and 350 for bikes and eco-responsible facilities, was delayed for ten years. The final cost was 480 million euros, more than ten times the original budget. Annual maintenance work will cost nearly a million euros.

Five covered platforms

The new elegant and almost pure white station has five covered platforms, including one for buses and cabs. The train platforms are elevated to 76 centimeters, and tactile paths are provided for the visually impaired and blind. In addition, twelve elevators give access to the walkway and platforms. As of Wednesday, commuters and passersby can easily reach the new station on foot from downtown Mons.

There is also a new 165-by-15-meter pedestrian bridge between Place Léopold and Place des Congrès. The bridge is not accessible to cyclists.

4th station

Mons is the fifth busiest station in Wallonia, receiving some 57,000 passengers a week. It is served by 189 trains on weekdays. The new station is the fourth version of this building in almost two centuries. The official opening on Wednesday is nearly 183 years after the opening of the first station in the Hainaut capital on December 19, 1841.

Several NMBS/SNCB stations are receiving a facelift as part of the station transformation plan, although the strategy has now “fundamentally changed.” Since 2018, “a new concept of station buildings has been developed.

It is characterized by its modularity, making it possible not only to apply it to all stations but also to adapt the equipment to changing needs over the years to evolve into “functional, comfortable, sustainable, and accessible stations connected to other public transport.”

NMBS/SNCB also specifies that it is “now ensuring the best value for money by favoring austerity and efficiency in its choices, including in terms of maintenance and energy consumption.”

Since the launch of the NMBS/SNCB station transformation plan, 31 buildings have been renovated or rebuilt according to this new approach. Construction is underway on 48 sites, and another 28 projects are planned, bringing the number to 76 new stations by the end of 2032.