22.10.2024

“Little green train station” in Zorneding

Building design

Deutsche Bahn opened its first station made of wooden modules in Zorneding in December 2023 Copyright: Deutsche Bahn AG / Station & Service

Deutsche Bahn has opened its first “little green station” in the Upper Bavarian town of Zorneding. The special feature: Sustainability is at the heart of the modular wooden station. In future, Deutsche Bahn would like to build more stations of this type.

Deutsche Bahn has opened its first “little green station” in the Upper Bavarian town of Zorneding. The special feature: The modular wooden station focuses on sustainability. In future, Deutsche Bahn would like to build more stations of this type.

The “little green station” in Zorneding is an important pilot project for Deutsche Bahn, as it represents the blueprint for many other stations. The sustainable station boasts a small photovoltaic system on the roof, including battery storage. A sustainable second-life battery storage system made from used electric car batteries can store up to 20 kWh of energy from the solar system and release it when needed. The station’s skylights provide natural light. The exterior construction is made of wood from the region. The modular station should allow more space to be provided in future. Deutsche Bahn is also planning to build many similar modular sustainable mini-stations. The next one is currently being built in Haar, a town just a few kilometers away, and is due to open in early summer 2024.

Zorneding’s new station opened on December 18, 2023 and is the first station reception building to be made entirely of wood. Bernd Koch, CEO of DB Station&Service AG, inaugurated the 200 square meter building. Representatives from the federal government, the Free State of Bavaria and the municipality were also present. The building cost a total of around 2.2 million euros. Deutsche Bahn financed this prize together with the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BDMV), the state of Bavaria and the municipality of Zorneding.

Sustainability is a clear priority for the “little green station”, both in terms of construction and the technical equipment and interior design. The wood for the Zorneding station comes from the region. A traditional timber construction company from Regensberg produced the individual building elements. These modules are standardized and, similar to prefabricated houses, can now be used to create many different floor plans, sizes and designs. The construction basis remains the same. Deutsche Bahn hopes that many more “small green stations” will be built in the coming decades. They should provide individual, fast and environmentally friendly access to travel.

The station’s waiting room has modern seating, charging facilities for cell phones and a ServiceStore DB, which offers outdoor seating on the forecourt. 200 additional bicycle parking spaces and a new bicycle ramp will make the station more accessible. The new Zorneding station also includes public, barrier-free toilet facilities and a ticket machine. In winter, a climate-friendly heat pump ensures pleasant temperatures, while cooling is also possible in summer.

Bernd Koch, CEO of DB Station&Service AG, says: “Our aim is to build sustainable station buildings for cities, communities and our passengers in a short space of time. Zorneding is the debut for a whole series of other small green stations. Because the more inviting and attractive the experience at our stations is, the more passengers we can attract to the climate-friendly railroad and thus to “Strong Rail”.”

Dr. Corinna Salander, Head of the Railways Department at the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport, emphasizes that the design of the Zorneding station is forward-looking: “Serial, sustainable construction is a huge issue for us. This construction method combines three key advantages: it is faster, more sustainable and cheaper in the long term. We will therefore be taking a very close look at this pilot project because we believe that it offers great opportunities for the construction methods of the future.”

Want to read more about train stations? The November issue of G+L is dedicated entirely to this topic.

31.12.2024

Society

Tilling open space

Building design

As the population increases, so does the density stress in Swiss cities and conurbations. At the same time, outdoor recreation and sport are becoming more important. A 2014 publication on the greater Zurich area provides examples of how existing green spaces can be made more accessible. Pieter Poldervaart analyzes the results in the December issue of G+L. The study Freiraumnetz Zürich can be […]

As the population increases, so does the density stress in Swiss cities and conurbations. At the same time, outdoor recreation and sport are becoming more important. A 2014 publication on the greater Zurich area provides examples of how existing green spaces can be made more accessible. Pieter Poldervaart analyzes the results in the December issue of G+L. You can download the Freiraumnetz Zürich study here.

8.42 million people lived in Switzerland in 2017, compared to 7.08 million or 19 percent fewer twenty years ago. In the past, this annual growth of one percent and the increasing demand for living space per capita was accompanied by a partly unchecked urban sprawl. Greater Zurich is particularly affected by the rapid growth in the resident population. Three million people live in the perimeter defined as the Zurich metropolitan area, which includes not only the canton of Zurich but also numerous municipalities in neighboring cantons and even in neighboring southern Germany.

Forecasts suggest that 30,000 people per year will continue to move to Switzerland’s economic center. In addition to housing and jobs, these people also need recreational space. In 2014, the Zurich Metropolitan Area Association therefore published an outline that shows the way to a “settlement-related open space network” – as the title suggests. In addition to describing the problem, the guide aims to show how existing recreational areas can be upgraded and new ones created and how planning is possible across municipal and cantonal boundaries. You can download the study here.

You can read the full article in G+L 12/18.

06.01.2025

Event

One brick prize, many awards

Building design

Main prizewinner of the German Brick Award 2019 — City library

German Brick Award 2019 presented – one prize, many awards for exemplary energy projects

The results of the German Brick Award 2019 were announced on February 1: 120 submissions of exemplary energy-efficient brick projects from all over Germany made the decision difficult for the jury, chaired by Piero Bruno from the Berlin office of Bruno Fioretti Marquez. The high design quality ultimately led to a large number of awards – two main prizes, six special prizes in various categories and eight commendations.

The main prize for monolithic construction was deservedly awarded to Harris + Kurrle Architekten from Stuttgart for the municipal library in Rottenburg am Neckar. The jury praised “the sensitive positioning of the remarkable new building as a communicative and contemplative place in the fabric of the city”. It also praised the public building for its skillful, creative use of monolithic exterior wall constructions made of highly insulating bricks.

An extension

The main prize for multi-shell construction went to the remarkable extension to the Philosophy Department of the University of Münster by Peter Böhm Architekten from Cologne. “The building, modestly described as a ‘shelf wall’, cleverly incorporates the existing listed building and forms an attractive façade opposite the historic Fürstenberghaus,” said the jury. “In this case, the haptic brick becomes synonymous with sensual appeal and a cleverly reduced, ornamental appearance.”

A special prize for energy efficiency

Several special prizes were also awarded, including one for “Cost-effective, energy-efficient multi-storey residential construction”. This was won by the Ulm-based firm Braunger Wörtz Architekten with their project at Vorwerkstrasse 23/1 in Neu-Ulm. The new building for the Neu-Ulm housing association (NUWOG) comprises 31 publicly subsidized, barrier-free rental apartments in a six-storey building and is designed as a KfW Efficiency House 70. The jury: “The uncomplicated design with monolithic brick exterior walls, which are finished with a white cement scratch coat that does not require painting, guarantees this residential building a low-maintenance, long life.”

Awarded by: Ziegelzentrum Süd e.V. in cooperation with the
Federal Ministry of the Interior
www.ziegel.com

The exhibition can be seen until February 15, 2019 at the Haus der Architektur, Waisenhausstraße 4 in Munich. It will then travel to various universities.

Photos: Roland Halbe; Lukas Roth; Erich Spahn