North Greenwich Station

Completion: 1998

Size: 13,280 m2

AWARDS:

2000 BCIA Award

2000 RIBA Civic and Community Architecture Award

1999 RIBA Stirling Prize Short-list

1999 Concrete Society Award

Alsop Architects

North Greenwich Station has been acclaimed as one of the most striking of the twelve stations on London Underground’s £3.5 billion Jubilee Line Extension - probably the greatest single programme of architectural patronage in post-war Britain. As the gateway to the Millennium Dome and with its associated bus link, the station has now become one of the most heavily used on the line. It is also one of the largest and forms an integrated transport interchange serving a wide area of south-east London, the Millennium Village and developments on the peninsula.

The context for the scheme was a cleared site, with no existing buildings: the site for the station was determined by the alignment of the line which crosses the Thames twice between Canary Wharf and Canning Town. The scheme provided for a cut-and cover approach, with the station totally enclosed by a ‘lid’ - with provision for a subsequent ‘air rights’ development.

The dynamic form of the station is memorable and provides a clear and comprehensible diagram - a prime objective in all JLE stations and a sharp contrast to the confined and confusing spaces of some older Underground stations. Equally memorable is the bold use of colour with blue mosaic columns, and deep blue glass as a wall cladding. These precise finishes contrast with the exposed concrete and suspended services of the roof.

The station was shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize in 1999.