UNS's design proposal for Turin's new Metro Line 2, developed in collaboration with Settanta7, Mijksenaar, Frigorosso, 3BA, and WSP, has been selected by an international jury of experts chaired by Dominique Perrault. The proposal is based on the idea of "flow," a concept that has historically shaped the Italian city, from the Po and Dora rivers to the 18 kilometers of arcaded porticoes that structure how residents and visitors move. The project envisions Line 2 as a new "urban river," guided by three design principles to facilitate this flow: branding, transit experience, and scales of identity. With 32 stations planned in total, the initial design phase includes 10 stations, among them Mole Giardini, San Giovanni Bosco, and Carlo Alberto.
In Iran's capital, Tehran, movement defines the city. Each day, millions navigate a landscape shaped by highways, traffic corridors, and dense urban blocks. Over decades of rapid expansion, infrastructure has become the dominant language of development. Streets prioritize vehicles, sidewalks function as narrow conduits, and many public spaces operate primarily as passages rather than places of gathering. Across parts of West Asia, ongoing conflict has also reshaped the region's urban landscapes, where significant architectural environments have been damaged or transformed. Within this broader context, the preservation and creation of everyday civic space becomes increasingly meaningful. Recognized with the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, the Jahad Metro Plaza project, designed by KA Architecture Studio, demonstrates how modest infrastructural interventions can reshape the civic life of a city.
The metro network plays a central role in Tehran's daily life. It connects distant districts and sustains the rhythms of the metropolis. Yet the places where the underground city meets the surface are rarely conceived as civic environments. Metro entrances typically appear as fragments of infrastructure: stairs descending below ground, surrounded by railings, kiosks, and improvised circulation paths. They function efficiently as thresholds, but seldom as places to remain.
This week has been marked by the deliberate, rampant, and unjust destruction of war in Southeast Asia. As one of the most damaging manifestations of human abuse of power, we have witnessed the destruction of places that hold memories and sustain culture, as well as the loss and irreparable harm to the human lives that lend them their identity. With the expectation of offering brighter and more constructive scenarios in the future, we present, in contrast to this reality, a scenario of progress in the gender gap that characterizes architecture and its paths forward, a group of landmark projects of public and community interest moving forward from Türkiye to Mexico, and three major multimodal transport infrastructure projects improving the way we circulate and inhabit public space in Europe and the United States.
In an era of people-centered urban planning, 15-minute cities, “eyes on the street,” and active public spaces, parking garages are often seen as the antithesis of contemporary urban ideals. But that was not always the case. If today they challenge architects and planners to reinvent them in pursuit of more sustainable mobility and more human cities, in the past they stood as witnesses to a radical transformation in how we move, inhabit, and perceive urban space. Once symbols of modernity, parking garages embodied the height of an age when the automobile was seen as a driving force of progress. This shift in meaning reveals them as much more than utilitarian structures — they are powerful reflections of the evolution of urbanism, technology, and social habits over the past two centuries.
An architecture degree may provide a vast curriculum, but many of the skills needed for a project lie outside the discipline. This is especially true for urban-scale projects. They demand expertise in areas like traffic studies, structural calculations, landscape design, and technical installation forecasting. These are often seen as "complementary" but are, in fact, fundamental to the overall design.
In a country like Portugal, with a relatively small but geographically diverse territory, the challenge of connecting different parts of the territory – whether to cross a river or link one level of a city to another – is a constant one. Its largest metropolitan areas, such as Lisbon and Porto, share a rugged geography of steep valleys and hills. These features led to the development of elevators and funiculars, like the Santa Justa Lift and the Bica Funicular in Lisbon, and the Guindais Funicular in Porto. Today, besides improving urban mobility, they have become tourist landmarks.
Areal am Kronenrain / MONO Architekten. Image Courtesy of Gregor Schmidt
Marginalized in architectural discourse and often dismissed as purely functional, parking garages remain among the most ubiquitous structures in the urban landscape. Designed to accommodate the needs of private vehicles, they occupy central locations, shape skylines, and consume considerable resources, yet rarely receive the same attention — or architectural care — as cultural institutions, schools, or housing. Despite their prevalence, these buildings tend to fade into the background of daily life, treated as infrastructural necessities rather than as design opportunities.
This is beginning to change. As urban mobility undergoes profound transformations — from the decline of car ownership to the rise of electric vehicles and shared transport systems — the role of parking infrastructure is being redefined. Architects and planners are reimagining garages as adaptable frameworks that integrate public space, ecological functions, and mixed-use programs. These new approaches challenge the perception of parking as a residual typology and instead position it as a civic structure with the potential to support more inclusive, flexible, and sustainable urban models.
Amid the traffic-clogged arteries of Los Angeles, where cars have long ruled the streets, the future of urban mobility is being questioned. The reorientation focuses not on simply removing cars or introducing new technology, but on envisioning the city as an integrated system in which people, places, and vehicles coexist in balance. Automobiles are no longer the unquestioned centerpiece of urban life; instead, they are treated as one component of a broader, multimodal transportation network. Design now seeks to prioritize human needs and experiences over vehicular dominance.
Boise, United States. Image via Wikipedia user: Fæ. License under CC0 1.0. Image Author: Alden Skeie
From greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution to deforestation, one of the leading contributors to global warming today is emissions from the transportation sector. Exploring its origins and evolution, as well as the major challenges it faces, the development of electric mobility in urban environments represents a global transition that requires a coordinated mix of policies and actions to achieve cleaner and more sustainable transportation systems. Designing safe and comfortable infrastructure for walking and cycling, promoting public transit and shared mobility, and designing more efficient streets that include electric vehicles, among other actions, are part of a growing worldwide effort to reduce carbon emissions.
The gas station is an architectural typology that has undergone significant transformations since its inception. Initially, these structures were simple roadside refueling points designed for functionality rather than aesthetics. As automobile culture expanded, gas stations evolved to accommodate new technologies, shifting urban landscapes and changing consumer behaviors. Over time, they became more than just utilitarian stops — they developed into service hubs, integrating restaurants, motels, and leisure spaces, responding to contemporary transportation increasing demands.
By the late 20th century, however, the widespread standardization of gas stations led them to be perceived as "non-places", a concept defined by anthropologist Marc Augé to describe transient spaces that lack social or cultural significance. With uniform designs and a focus on efficiency, gas stations became interchangeable, reinforcing their role as purely functional infrastructure rather than meaningful architectural interventions. This standardization also departed from the era when fuel stations served as recognizable landmarks, contributing to a homogenized landscape devoid of local identity.
New York City has implemented the first congestion pricing scheme in the US, charging drivers up to $9 per day to enter a designated zone south of Central Park, encompassing areas like Times Square and Wall Street. The initiative aims to alleviate chronic traffic congestion, improve air quality, and generate revenue for public transportation improvements, addressing New York City's ranking as the world's most congested urban area for two consecutive years. The plan went into effect Sunday, January 5th, 2025.
India is often recognized for its thriving technology industry, with a reputation for producing a substantial number of skilled tech professionals each year. This has attracted a dynamic technology ecosystem that increasingly draws global companies to establish operations in the country. The rise of tech parks has become a key strategy for harnessing this talent and resources, cultivating an environment conducive to innovation. What impact do these tech parks have on the urban landscape of Indian cities?
Rendering of the proposed La Rambla redevelopment project. Image Courtesy of Barcelona City Council, under policy of fair use
La Rambla, a 1.2-kilometer-long promenade in Barcelona, was established in 1766 along the old city walls. Embraced by locals, it became the only spacious area for strolling in a city of narrow streets and grew into a central meeting place for all social classes. Over time, leisure and cultural sites, like the Gran Teatre del Liceu and Boqueria Market, emerged, making it a vibrant, cultural hub. In 2017, Barcelona's local government launched a competition for the revitalization of this beloved urban space. Km_ZERO, a 15-member interdisciplinary team that also relied on the input of community groups was declared the winner. Now the first phase of the urbanization process has been almost completed, led by Lola Domènech and Olga Tarrasó. A hundred trees still remain to be planted in this phase, postponed due to drought conditions. The entire project is expected to be finished in 2027.
The team led by Henning Larsen, in collaboration with Ramboll, Cistri, Gehl, Participate in Design, and Camphora has won the commission for the master plan consultancy to design Singapore’s North-South Corridor’s surface streets. The project proposes an expansive urban transformation, aiming to integrate public transport, active mobility, community-focused spaces, and greenery along the 21.5km corridor. Local communities and stakeholders are also actively engaged in the design process through public engagement sessions. The initial master plan design is set to continue into 2026, over the next 18 months.
The 15-minute city has become an internationally recognized concept advocating for a people-centric urban model where residents should be able to meet most of their daily needs within a 15-minute walk or bike ride from their homes. The concept was introduced by Professor Carlos Moreno in 2015 following the COP21 conference in Paris, which concluded with the signing of the Paris Agreement. The idea proposes a practical and adaptable framework for introducing low-carbon mobility and creating a vibrant local economy to support more social interaction and more sustainable urban environments. Since then, the concept has been recognized with the 2021 Obel Award and has gained a notable recommendation in UN-Habitat's World Cities Report. Now, Professor Moreno is publishing the book titled “The 15-Minute City: A Solution to Saving Our Time and Our Planet” to showcase concrete examples and strategies for achieving better cities. ArchDaily had a chance to sit down with Professor Carlos Moreno to discuss these ideas, offering insight into Moreno’s urban thinking and the impact of this model.
As the world witnesses an unprecedented exodus from rural to urban areas, cities face a monumental challenge: how to accommodate a constantly growing population? This phenomenon, characterized by rapid population growth and increasing density, puts pressure on resources, infrastructure, and urban services. As significant problems demand even larger solutions, it becomes necessary, more than ever, to rethink the tools at our disposal. In this challenging context, the rise of emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI) presents itself as a light at the end of the tunnel. These technologies, initially conceived to simplify everyday tasks and facilitate communication, are potential instruments that enable an effective response to contemporary urban challenges.
As we reach mid-2024, European cities showcase various urban development markers that are shaping the trajectory for the remainder of the year. Under themes of urban mobility in Brussels, sustainability in Valencia, Smart Cities in Rotterdam, and urban cooling in Paris, each city is making noteworthy progress on the road to meet the 2030 targets set by the Paris Agreement. In these diverse urban fabrics, European cities are committed to defining challenges and working towards shaping a climate-conscious future.
