The Box: Water Metro Station Prototype
Client / Location Kochi Metro Rail Corporation (KMRL) / India.
Year / Status 2017 / Conceptual
Typology Public, Urban Intervention, Competition Entry
Site Area / Built-up Area 2250 sq.m. / 500 sq.m.
Collaboration JohN / john.instagram.com
The proposed Water Metro Station at Vyttila has been envisioned as an integral part of the comprehensive Vyttila Mobility Hub Masterplan. The Vyttila Mobility Hub represents the transportation gateway to the city of Ernakulam, where multiple modes of intra and inter city transit systems meet, and acts as a welcoming point of entry to the city for both the visitors and commuters.
The entry to the Water Metro Station at Vyttila is also envisioned to act as a Gateway Portal to the water transport experience in Ernakulam. It not only marks a transition from one mode of transit to another but also creates a transitory space where people meet, interact and share. The gateway is reminiscent of the ‘Thorana’ seen in ancient Buddhist Temples that marks the entry to the sacred precinct by acting as a medium for conveying a possible change of experience ahead for the concerned user. The design acting both as a landmark structure that dominantly marks the culmination of the ‘Grand Pedestrian Axis’ at the waterfront and as a series of loosely connected spaces where people can meet, talk, eat, share and socialise. The form is organised as cuboid volumetric masses of 5 meter sides that can befit this duality in character with its functional program in a very simple yet sophisticated manner.
