New transport system to link districts across the Vltava river

Tenderstream member William Matthews Associates has won an international design competition for the three stations and five pylons that will form a new cable car system over the Vltava river in Prague, linking the districts of Podbaba, Troja and Bohnice. The winning design takes advantage of Prague's mild climate, which makes it possible to create open platforms that allow passengers to enjoy new views of the city.

The three stations have been conceived as a single roof, split into three, unifying the architectural language of the different locations. The roof geometry fluidly adapts to the functions of the building, as well as reacting to its surroundings. Each individual roof encloses the cable car equipment in an acoustic shell, floating above the platforms. Below, the platforms are simple, with open floor plates that help to create views up and down the Troja valley. The lower part of each station responds to the local area, with Podbaba’s urban setting connected to the city centre, Troja’s natural backdrop situated in the valley landscape, and Bohnice located at the edge of a residential quarter, creating a new transport hub cultivating the adjacent public space. Overall, the compact volume of each station reduces construction and maintenance costs, while minimising embodied carbon.

Mountain cable car pylons often form the impression of tangled, disorganised structures and equipment, but the unique natural area of the valley required a sensitive approach. The pylons are designed as a simple form integrating all the cableway’s structural requirements, minimising unwanted technical elements. The design solution offers a clean and uncluttered silhouette on the Troja hillside.

Lucy Nordberg
Tenderstream Head of Research

This tender was first published by Tenderstream on 06.05.2022 here

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