Competition by invitation 1984. First prize

The determination of the Spanish Ministry of Transportation to carry out a total overhaul of the old Atocha Station and quadruple its capacity, and the propsal put forward by City Hall in the Master Plan to free the Glorieta de Carlos V from existing traffic overpass, are the two poles around which the complex urban piece we might call »Operation Atocha« revolves. The old canopy, the station square, the commuter train station, and the long distance train station make up the principal elements of the project. The roof of the long distance train station is characterized by the slenderness of the columns which support it, and the logic of its construction in a horizontal plane, composed of thin slabs and beams, including skylights which guarantee adequate illumination an ventilation.