Beatrixlaan lightrailstation, The Hague

To improve accessibility by public transport to the Beatrixkwartier in The Hague, connectivity with the RandstadRail network was needed. In this dense urban area a new and elevated station had to be developed along the Beatrixlaan. Space was scarce, as a two-way road and a bicycle path follow the same route. To obtain an asymmetrical layout these two had to be re-routed.

ZJA’s design for an elevated lightrail viaduct over 400 meters and the station is based on two principles. First, the entire construction was not to appear as a spatial and visual obtrusion, as a heavy obstacle, but rather as a light and open construction that emanates movement, connectivity and energy. Secondly, the construction of the elevated lightrail and the station should be used as an opportunity to create a new and attractive identity for the public space in the neighbourhood.

The elevation was designed to make sure pedestrians, cyclists and motorists alike maintained an unobstructed view. The fewer columns necessary to support the enormous construction, the better. That meant the tube through which the train moves had to be high, strong and stiff to allow for a large span. ZJA designed a construction consisting of huge steel rings with a diameter of ten meters, set apart forty to fifty meters and supported by V-shaped columns. The vertical rings are connected by diagonally placed tubes. This creates a strong but open network of tubes that widens at the section where the station is, like a boa constrictor after having swallowed a piglet. This design is the result of a quest for an efficient and functional construction but offering an aesthetic, even joyful, sexy image all at the same time. It did not take long for the elevated light rail to acquire a nickname: The Fishnet Stocking.