Railway stations : masterpieces of architecture [Texto impresso] / Charles Sheppard

Abstract:
The world's great railway stations are evocative of romantic, cross-continental journeys and rough-and-ready adventure. Not simply imposing examples of civic architecture, these structures also represent massive feats of engineering. This authoritative volume traces and celebrates the history and technical development of these essential hubs of transportation, from the earliest wooden buildings to the most modern cathedrals of travel and commerce.
With the nineteenth century's rapidly expanding system of railroads came an ever-growing need for larger, more versatile terminals. Iron and glass relapced wood as the building materials of choice, and higher, wider, and more intricate valuted sheds were designed to house the massive locomotives. Convenience of passenger circulation was also of primary concern; new stations employed increasingly sophisticated engineering techniques to facilitate foot as well as train traffic.
Later railway station designs had, of necessity, to include more and more architectural elements. Hotels, restaurants, ticket halls, concourses, and waiting rooms were all incorporated into the huge terminals of Europe and America. Along with this development came the trend toward monumental facades employing such decorative devices as columns, arches, and statuary. The most successful of these structures mesh seamlessly with the architecture of their surrounding cities in a timeless blend of form and function.
Today with the popularity and convenience of automobiles, trucks, and airplains as modes of transportation for both goods and people, the world's railways are on the decline. Sophisticated technologies, however, such as Europe's and Japan's high-speed trains, may yet bring about a new era of rail travel and a return to the tradition of grand stationbuilding. (Charles Sheppard)