The Parisian metro system may be the sixth-largest in the world, carrying nearly 1.5 billion passengers each year over 132 miles of track, but it has some quirks. One of them is the 11 stations that sit unused all year around. One Paris mayoral candidate wants to clean up these abandoned stations, and breathe new life into them.
Photo: OXO Architectes
Photo: OXO Architectes
Candidate Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet hopes to turn the unused stations into spaces all Parisians can enjoy. She’s partnered with French architects Manal Rachdi and Nicolas Laisné from OXO Architectes to conceive several potential uses for the stations, including a subterranean garden, a nightclub, and a swimming pool. In a statement via email, Rachdi said, “This project aims to bring back to life these ghost stations […] to swim in the metro seems like a crazy dream, but it could soon come true!” The old subway stations could also be used to compensate for a lack of public sporting facilities aboveground.
