An everyday destination
Riga Central Station, a highly-frequented city junction that is of great importance to the city, is set to become one out of the many stops of the Rail Baltica railway line. To prepare the station for its future development, the City of Riga tasked Gehl to improve the station’s square as an entry to the station via different mobility modes and as an attractive public space for both visitors and locals.
To understand movement patterns and connections to the surrounding neighborhood, the Gehl team conducted an initial Public Space Public Life survey and workshops with locals, experts, and interested parties. The findings revealed that pedestrian access to the station was high priority, wayfinding could be improved, and the square could be designed with a unique identity.
Gehl developed two design proposals for the square: a short-term plan and a long-term vision that also included reconfiguring the overall road hierarchy in the city center. This approach allow the team to optimize the design for car traffic while reallocating space for alternative modes of transport, such as light rail, buses, walking, and cycling. The concept design also explored facade and sidewalk improvements and considered options for bicycle parking and pedestrian street crossings.
The project aimed to inspire the City of Riga urban design, influencing station area improvements in line with Rail Baltica’s plans and costs.
