Kempkensberg railway station in Groningen is located some two kilometres south of the city centre in an area which is to undergo radical revision in the coming years. Once the abandoned electric power station has been demolished, the area will be transformed into a 'Europapark', a park of offices and businesses of great economic significance. Scattered round this area are such existing living and working districts as the Helpman housing estate and Kempkensberg office park. Although both the government and Netherlands Rail have grand plans for this site, these have reached an impasse. In the council's scheme the station has a major part to play in accessing the area and as the driving force behind embedding the many companies to be domiciled there. The railways however would rather not think about building a station until the companies are in place. The design sets out to resolve the above set of problems and make of this forgotten patch of land, a significant feature of the city. For this reason the projected station is much more than just an architectural increment on a transport route, as it additionally couples and accesses the surrounding parts of Groningen. The station is shaped entirely by infrastructures. Here, various modes of travel intersect naturally, gelling into a perspicuous transport machine that pulls surroundings and infrastructure into a single entity. Kempkensberg railway station is built up of the following elements: a bridge, a park, a platform (set centrally between the rails), a roof and a lucid architecture. The two kilometre long bridge, a raised trajectory complete with people-movers, links the individual areas with each other and with the railway platform. The park reconciles the areas either side of the railway, its surface dropping below ground level where it crosses the lines to proclaim the station forecourt. All supportive functions, such as a promenade with shops, bus and taxi stops as well as parking places for dropping and collecting passengers, line up along an elongated void beneath the station platform. The station's trademark is its roof, a canvas-spanned steel structure to shelter people on the platform and mark the crossing. After dark the illuminated roof is a beacon in the city. Despite its vast dimensions, the roof is slender of form thanks to the multidisciplinary design task and particularly the discussions with the structural engineer. Institution: Groningen Tutors: Maarten Struijs, Otto Wassenaar & Harry Reijnders Specialization: architecture