With Køge North Station, a new gateway to Copenhagen has been created for the nearly 40,000 residents of the Danish port city of Køge. In future, numerous commuters and travellers will be able to cover the 45-kilometre route by train efficiently and sustainably in just 24 minutes.
The architecture and technical design contribute to a positive travel experience. This is also supported by the futuristic pedestrian bridge, which connects the new double-track Copenhagen–Ringsted high-speed line with the existing S-train line, crossing the heavily used A1 motorway.
For its exceptional architecture, the project received the IABSE Denmark Structure Award 2019 and was a finalist at the MIPIM Awards 2020.
The covered bridge at Køge North Station extends over a total length of 225 metres and has an inviting design. It offers passengers both an open view to the north and views to the south through smaller openings in the interior wooden panels. This creates both open areas and zones for lingering.
Between the wooden panels inside the gently curved bridge, LED light lines from the AQUALUC W:AVE series with a colour temperature of 3200 Kelvin were integrated as general lighting.
Lighting Concept Inspired by Mikado
The idea behind the lighting concept was inspired by the game “Mikado”. “There was to be no system or rhythm in the arrangement of the light lines. Instead, the lighting was intended to express a sense of randomness,” says Carsten Svej, Managing Director of the planning office Relight.
This was made possible both by the product flexibility of the AQUALUC LED light lines and by the profile developed jointly with Barthelme to accommodate the LED light lines. As a result, the light lines could be installed at any desired position on the bridge, even though the gaps between the individual wooden elements vary in width.
With their high lumen output, the integrated AQUALUC W:AVE light lines also exceed the minimum requirement of 100 lux illuminance on the floor surface of the passageway. The IP67-rated light lines were manufactured in lengths of 1 m, 2 m, 3 m and 4.5 m and joined end to end on site.
The use of translucent end caps prevents any disruptive shadowing. This enabled continuous, homogeneous LED light lines of up to 18 m in length to be realised between the wooden beams.
AQUALUC Integrated into Handrails
AQUALUC W:AVE light lines were also used by the planner for the handrails, each 20 m long, on the stairways leading up to the bridge.
“What was interesting in this area was that we were able to use the same product for the staircase as we had used inside the bridge. In addition, we only needed a few connections for a relatively long distance,” says Carsten Svej.
Project: Køge North Station
Architecture: Cobe, DISSING+WEITLING architecture, COWI, Bladt Industries
Lighting design: Relight
Photography: © Rasmus Hjortshøj – COAST