What we delivered

  • A modular approach to railway station redevelopment to accelerate construction time and reduce costs

  • Upgrade of ageing infrastructure to accelerate the expansion of the rail network 

  • Improved passenger comfort through natural ventilation and lighting, clear wayfinding and one-way circulation to avoid congestion 

Services used
Bridge design and engineering / Rail infrastructure design / Structural engineering

With India’s growing population, railway stations across the country are becoming increasingly overcrowded. While the rail network connects millions of daily commuters, ageing infrastructure continues to limit the overall passenger experience.

The Ministry of Railways in India has been prioritising station redevelopment to improve the passenger experience and better integrate stations with surrounding communities. However, working within live operational environments has presented significant challenges, often resulting in delays and cost overruns.

In response to this, the Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) and the Ministry of Railways appointed Arup to help find a solution to these challenges. With a focus on enhancing passenger experience, our team created a modular station framework designed for scalable application across India’s expanding rail network. 

By supporting the redevelopment of the ageing stations, this will help the country to develop stations at a faster pace, while also offering a more convenient and comfortable experience for the people that they connect and creating a vital centre of regeneration. 

A modular approach to station redevelopment

To inform the development of the Design Handbook for Modular Railway Stations, Arup engaged with RLDA’s in-house technical, operational and maintenance specialists to make sure the modular approach to station redevelopment was suitable for construction within an operational railway and integrated seamlessly with existing rail infrastructure.

Our multidisciplinary team in India and the UK worked together to ensure that constructability, technical suitability, maintenance, whole-life costs, environmental impact and sustainability were also incorporated into the Handbook. It also demonstrates how stations can be modernised within the complex constraints of some of the busiest railway stations in the world.

The Handbook focuses on a number of typical station components - including entry and exit blocks, concourses, through roof canopies and cover over platforms and footbridges - and sets out a methodology for standardising these key elements so they can be easily integrated and prebuilt off site.

Rather than having to wait for components to be constructed on the project site, this modular system enables prefabricated structures to be added swiftly when required, significantly reducing the time it takes to develop stations. This method is also highly scalable and replicable, meaning that it can be applied to all stations to accelerate their development and deliver improvements cost effectively.

By adopting this approach, Indian Railways is set to cut its average station redevelopment time significantly. This resilient framework also enables the redeveloped stations to be framed upon an extendable design, which means that they can be easily expanded in the future in response to changing requirements.

Sketch showing typical railway station elements

Sketch showing typical station elements - entry/exit blocks, concourses, canopies, platform covers and footbridges - designed for seamless standardisation and off-site prefabrication.

Improving the user experience  

Beyond its efficiency improvements, our team also designed the modular approach to enhance the passenger experience. This was achieved through a number of design choices that will influence every station’s redevelopment. For instance, the Handbook focuses on designing stations with open concourses, which enables their spaces to be naturally ventilated. Open concourses also fill stations with natural light, as well as aiding wayfinding by minimising the use of structures that could obstruct viewpoints.

Additionally, the guidance avoids congestion by separating arrival and departure spaces. With this design, passengers are encouraged to move in one direction, as they enter the station through the footbridge and exit via the concourse. This one-way circulation of footfall results in a more comfortable experience for all passengers. 

Arup remained as project advisors during the implementation of the designs and on hand to further refine the modular solutions framework if required.

Safdarjung Railway Station 

The modular design principles were first put into practice during the redevelopment of Delhi’s Safdarjung railway station, which is set to become a fully modernised railway station offering a comfortable, airport-style passenger experience - all while remaining operational. Arup led the detailed design of the station which is currently under construction.