The Jihlava high-speed terminal already has its shape24/5/2024|Press releasesSpráva železnic announced today in Jihlava the winner of the open architectural and urban design competition for the new high-speed railway Jihlava terminal. Out of the 25 architectural studios that took part in the competition, the winning design is by the French-Czech association AREP ARCHITECTES – monom. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2029. What the jury praised about the winning design is the way in which this new transport interchange integrates into the landscape, taking into account important landscape features in the wider surroundings. As for the transport function, the jury highlighted the clarity of all transfer links in the terminal and the very well designed bus station. Given the expected capacity of the terminal of up to 6 000 passengers per day, i.e. up to 300 passengers per hour at peak times, the jury appreciated the short transfer routes between the different modes of transport, which the design effectively addresses. "After the Prague East and Roudnice nad Labem terminals, the Jihlava terminal is already the third one that knows its future shape. As in previous cases, the Jihlava terminal will be a transfer hub between high-speed rail, local public transport and other modes of transport. The new fast connections will therefore increase the availability of jobs and education, and at the same time they will support life in the regions by causing a major change in the general perception of concepts such as distance and rural areas," says transport minister Martin Kupka. The competition focused on the integration of the terminal into the landscape and the landscaping design of the public space as well as the railway bridge over the D1 motorway and related structures. The Jihlava terminal will be a key interchange between the high-speed rail line and public and passenger transport in the Vysočina highlands region. The main criteria for the selection of the winning design were the quality of the urban, transport, landscape and environmental solution and the value for money. "The new terminal will support both long-distance journeys and daily commuting under the concept of fast rail connections. The integration of HSR into the conventional railway network and the efforts to achieve climate neutrality also show that this is a project reaching far beyond Vysočina and covering the entire Czech Republic," said Jiří Svoboda, Director General of Správa železnic. Due to the exposed location of the new terminal near the regional city of Jihlava and the D1 motorway, we assume that after construction completion significant development of the surrounding area will start, increasing the GDP of the entire region. Up to 118 trains pass through the Jihlava terminal every day. A high-speed train will stop here every 30 minutes. It will take 52 minutes to Prague and only 36 minutes to Brno. "We want the terminal to be a minimalist and ecological landmark with a low energy footprint. It adapts to the topography of the site and uses existing infrastructure to limit additional construction," explained architect Igor Hobza, representative of the winning association AREP ARCHITECTES – monom. The jury also appreciated the works of MS Architects and the JV Pelčák a partner architekti + HBH Projekt + Link projekt, ranked second and third. All the design proposals provided remarkable suggestions and interesting solutions. The public will be able to see them at an exhibition in the House of Culture and Trade Unions in Jihlava in Tolstého street from 27 March to 17 April 2024.