Enhancement and enlargement of Sants Railway Station

Abstract

The enlargement and improvement of Sants Railway Station Project in Barcelona intended, other than providing an access to new Madrid - Barcelona - French border high speed rail line, to optimize general railway transportation and local commerce enhancement, to improve horizontal and vertical pedestrian mobility within the Station and to make it possible to build a new commercial building on top of the station lobby for offices, shopping Mall and entertainment.Structurally speaking, works conducted to transform Sants Station were:- Station Main Hall was enlarged and some additional major changes were carried out. This required drilling through the existing floor to provide access for lower levels, which required demolishing portions of pre-stressed floor beams, including re-stressing the affected tendons, and strengthening of those floor beams.- Columns and foundation were strengthened to allow future high rise construction enlargement.- Railway horizontal alignments were changed, platforms were also accordingly modified. This required columns suppression. This was achieved by means of transferring the removed column loads to either steel new columns with top cantilevers or heavy steel frames.- Track #14 and Platform #7 were newly built. Access to platform #7 inferred partial demolition of a 2 meter thick bearing wall.- Station underground Parking was modified and enlarged, same as Service Buildings, ramps and road accesses, etc.