Platforms and Pavilions: the railway station in design and culture

The railway platform is both beginning and ending, familiar and strange. At first the platform may seem a banal necessity, rarely noticed except when we are waiting or delayed. Design of the station environment gives a sense of place and character, intangible qualities created from surface textures, architecture, form, style, materials, details, colours, signs, information, facilities, lighting, furnishings, and equipment, and the landscape of the station itself in its local context. Study of the platform as the central focus of the station is a record of innovation in design for people and transport and looks to the future as railways remain central to work and leisure. To better understand these essential railway structures and look to the future of railway passenger places, this book studies the railway platform and its associated buildings, colour schemes, signs, furniture and equipment, lighting, and environment including station gardens.