Sydney Metro City is up and running and the verdict is in – it was worth the wait. The latest section of Australia’s biggest transport project, which races under the harbour to connect Chatswood to Sydenham in just 22 minutes, is a hit.

‘Sydney Metro City line on track for greatness’, declared respected architecture critic Naomi Stead. Patrons, pundits and even politicians agree. It seems everyone riding the new line is excited and proud as Sydney embraces mass transit. 

Public transport can be a hard sell to people rusted onto the steering wheel of their cars. However, tag-on numbers show over a million people a week are passing through the metro station gates between Tallawong and Sydenham. That means fewer cars on the road, less congestion and a less polluted city for all.

The appeal of public transport rests on the user experience and is predicated on good station design. Beyond the baseline of safety and efficiency, what makes a great station?

The city is the first customer

Station design starts with the big picture – how will the new infrastructure integrate into its urban context? A well-integrated station treats the city as the first customer, respecting what exists and anticipating the future. It becomes a key part of a wider precinct, adding amenity and building on local character.

At precinct level, station entries and exits must be safe and accessible, and connect broadly to parks, high streets and existing shops and services as well as residents. Witness how the Sydney Metro upgrade at Central Station, led by Woods Bagot in collaboration with John McAslan + Partners, has opened up the station, easing congestion and creating new routes into surrounding green spaces and suburbs.

John McAslan + Partners’ Sydney Metro Waterloo station laid the foundation for a new town square and mixed-use precinct, the Waterloo Metro Quarter, currently under construction. Meanwhile, the new station respects the suburb’s existing residential and industrial heritage and is scaled to the surrounding buildings and retail shopping strip.

At the station’s edges, new businesses are moving in and the precinct is becoming a place of activity and life. Commuters can pause for a coffee en route to work and pick up essential supplies on their way home. Convenience is key – in Queensland, Australia Post is trialling parcel lockers in stations as another way to streamline busy lives.

A great transport precinct delivers economic and community uplift through sensitive urban planning, high-quality architecture and the right mix of business and services. It’s a complex equation that, when done right, supports healthy urban evolution.

The station experience – de-stressing daily life

More than just a place to pass through on your way from A to B, a great station is a social space that welcomes the community and de-stresses the daily commute.

On a functional level, it must accommodate passenger numbers and movement with ease. Beyond this, a good station ‘belongs’ as a new civic presence.

The new Northern Concourse at Sydney Central replaced a warren of dark and confusing pedestrian tunnels with a beautiful urban room for the city’s people. Flooded with natural light and air, it allows passengers to move easily and intuitively between intercity, suburban, light rail and Metro lines and vastly improves the station experience. Calm replaces stress as soaring kite-shaped skylights intersect with heritage buildings, adding beauty to the everyday.

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A stop further south, Waterloo Station serves a multicultural community that has a rich Indigenous, social and industrial history. The station design reflects this layered heritage across its three levels, giving the shiny new infrastructure a distinctive local flavour.

Three embedded artworks by Indigenous artist Nicole Monks, collectively titled ‘Footprints on Gadigal Nura’ and created in collaboration with the local community, were commissioned for Waterloo. One is the station’s most memorable feature: the joyful image of Roscoe, a young, local Indigenous dancer, towering over the concourse. Together, the artworks give the station a unique identity connecting past, present and future.

Waterloo’s generous concourse is top lit and features a skylight that delivers natural light deep underground. There is an overarching sense of light and air, and clear sightlines make wayfinding easy. The station is simply a nice place to be, and that is the measure of success. Add fast, frequent trains, and the decision to leave the car at home is easy. 

The value of transport-led infrastructure to cities can’t be overstated and quality station design helps realise its full potential. A good station experience encourages people to use public transport, reducing the number of cars on the road to the benefit of the entire city. That’s an investment in design worth making – and the people of Sydney need more of it.

John McAslan + Partners
mcaslan.co.uk

Photography
Peter Bennetts, Jes Lindsay

Read more about the Northern Concourse at Centra Station here