Architecture

Three ideas guide both stations:

• Daylight down to the platform. A central light well cuts through every level, so people going down can see the sky and people coming up know where to go.
• One clear move, no mazes. From street to train there is always a direct line of sight, with few changes of direction.
• Materials of the river. Pale exposed concrete, lioz limestone on surface paving and artist-designed ceramics on the walls, continuing Lisbon’s tradition of art in metro stations.

• Three levels: concourse (−8 m) with ticket gates and links, mezzanine (−17 m) for distribution and ventilation plant, island platform (−28 m).
• 110 m Estimate platform for 6-car trains (2 units of 50 m11), width ≈ 12 m Estimate, with platform screen doors.
• Evacuation sized to NFPA 130 criteria: platform clear in 4 min and point of safety in 6 min, with a peak load of two trains.

Cais do Sodré station sits beneath the waterfront, between the railway station and the ferry terminal. The main entrance is a low glass-and-stone pavilion on the square that keeps the river view open. A second underground link leads directly to the existing metro station.

Constraints: waterfront heritage protection zone, nearby Pombaline and 19th-century buildings on timber-pile foundations, groundwater at river level. The surface pavilion is limited to ≈ 6 m in height Estimate and ventilation grilles are integrated into the paving design.

In Cacilhas, the station gathers the metro, ferry, Metro Sul do Tejo tram and buses under one covered square. The long, light canopy shelters the interchange and frames the view towards Lisbon.

The Cacilhas concourse is designed as a public square that also works outside service hours. During construction the site serves as the worksite and TBM launch shaft; the design allows phased return of public space as excavation progresses.

Signage uses the project’s own colour, international pictograms and Portuguese and English text. Each level has a different floor colour, and the light well is a constant reference: “up” is always towards the light.

Wayfinding consistent with the existing metropolitan network (fare and information integration), without reproducing operators’ brands. Real-time ferry and MTS information in the Cacilhas concourse.

The whole route, from street to train, is step-free. There are duplicated lifts on every route, tactile paving, colour contrast for people with low vision, and audio and visual announcements.

• Compliance with the Portuguese accessibility regime (DL 163/2006), with the EU PRM TSI as reference.
• Platform–train horizontal gap ≤ 50 mm Estimate and step ≤ 20 mm Estimate.
• Lifts sized for a wheelchair user and companion, on emergency power.

The stations are an opportunity to improve both waterfronts: more pedestrian space, shade, seating and clear links between metro, ferry, train and tram. Ventilation and emergency exits are integrated into small pavilions and street furniture.

Coordination with Lisbon and Almada municipal plans and with the Port of Lisbon Authority. No new surface structures on the water.