The new Matera Centrale train station designed by Stefano Boeri Architetti has been officially opened in the European Capital of Culture 2019. Located in Piazza della Visitazione, the station aims to be “a place of passage, but also a place to stop and meet,” explains Boeri. “A public area consisting of two voids: the longitudinal void along the strip of tracks, and the void of the square, covered and surrounded by the large canopy”.

The structure consists of a large opening in the square of about 440 square meters, providing an underground part for the railway service and one above destined to the public and the city. The roof, located 12 meters high from the level of the square and 18 from the level of the quay, is supported by twelve steel columns creating a covered area, a meeting place for the whole city. The quay and the main building are covered by Apricena stone, with a reference to the local stone of Matera.