[ Project ]
GOTHENBURG CABLE CAR – with UNStudio, Gothenburg, Sweden 2017-2019
For the people and the City of Gothenburg, the cable car will provide an alternative form of public transport by way of aerial shortcuts. Travel times will be significantly reduced with minimum environmental impact, while an efficient and direct connection will be established between areas north of the river and the old city to the south.
Gothenburg‘s new cable car system will comprise one cable car line with four stations and six towers. It is one of a number of projects undertaken by the City of Gothenburg to mark its 400th anniversary in 2021. UNStudio together with lichtundsoehne won the competition to design the Gothenburg Cable Car System at the end of 2017.
The most visually apparent elements of the Cable Car system will be its towers. As highly visible landmarks, they will define a new skyline for the city. Illumination was also key in the placemaking strategy, achieved by spotlights that line the inside of the tower beam surface. Light cutting through a gap between structural components creates a thin, sharp line which subtly emphasises the silhouette at night, visible across the city.
The stations themselves are not only designed around principles of natural wayfinding and social safety, but also with a strong identity in mind. Although each of the four stations will be unique, they will still be clearly recognisable as part of the same system, and also as destination points within the city.
The general concept for the Gothenburg cable car is the ‘inner glow’.
It follows the Swedish habit of placing small lamps on window boards inside of houses and city apartments. Mostly being noticed as a tradition during Christmas time, the lights often shine throughout winter evenings, as well as the rest of the year’s darker hours. For the people on the streets, it creates a warm feeling of welcoming and fosters the community. Our intention is to carry over this regional specialty and support the cable car elements with the guise of a familiar sense of security and shelter.
Our design approach aims for a solution that considers and balances multiple user interests and behaviors, to support natural wayfinding and accessibility, combined with a specific branding strategy - creating a subtle, but clearly identifiable system for the City of Gothenburg.
A key element of the project is sustainability: environmental, social and economic. The Cable Car as a new type of urban public transportation is fundamentally pursued because of its benefits in terms of environmental impact. Energy use is reduced within the stations through the incorporation of large skylights that flood daylight into the stations and through the use of artificial lighting that uses low energy systems.
With the transparent structure and strong contrasts of materials, the buildings will be well noticeable at night by its emerging light from inside, while gently fitting into the varying surroundings. The lighting design strongly focuses on the interior illumination, the creation of a connection towards the users, as well as the functionalities and architectural qualities of the buildings.
CREDITS
Architect: UNStudio
Local Architect: Kjellgren Kaminsky Architecture AB
Lighting Design: lichtundsoehne
Structure & Engineering: Knippers & Helbig
Wind Engineering: Wacker Ingenieure
Local Engineering: Ramboll
Icing Analysis: Kjeller Vindteknikk
Visualisations: Plomp, UNStudio, lichtundsoehne
RELATED LINKS
TASKS
Daylight Analysis & Calculation, Artificial Lighting Conception and Design Development, Lighting Control Strategy
DATA
Client: The City of Gothenburg with Västtrafik AB
Traffic and Public Transport Authority
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
Building surface: 4 stations and 6 towers
Programme: Cable car facilities incl. stations and towers,
integrated into public transport system
Timing: 2017-19
