Østerport station is a listed building and thus represents one of the finest of Danish building culture. The station was originally designed by DSB’s chief architect Heinrich Wenck at the end of the 1897 century. The renovation was carried out with extreme focus on respecting the original architecture and style. Therefore, great care has been taken to use materials similar to the originals and to recreate the colour scheme. The architectural work was planned and carried out in close collaboration with the Agency for Culture and Palaces.
The renovation was carried out while maintaining full train services, which placed great demands on the logistics, approach and planning of the renovation project. Passenger numbers at Østerport Station are expected to increase from 30.000 to around 45.000 travellers daily after the opening of a new Metro line. The building and forecourt have been designed to accommodate the increasing passenger flow between buses, commuter trains, the costal railway and the metro.
The entrances to the suburban and coastal railway have been retained, but the corridor in the central passage of the station building has been extended by removing several load-bearing walls and replacing them with columns. At the same time, the original architectural qualities have been integrated and reinforced after the refurbishment. The original double-height arcades against the building’s two handsome barrel vaults have been exposed and have had their original arched spandrels rebuilt. New oak columns have been added and all the walls are constructed in wood, thatch and plaster.
In the process, serious damage to the west gable occurred. Damage to the foundation meant that the entire west gable was recorded, dismantled and put into storage so that the building’s foundation could be repaired. The gable was then rebuilt based on the meticulous registration. The timber frame construction has been repaired and, in some cases, completely replaced. A new slate roof has been laid and the roof structure has been renovated. The roof structure on which the whole building stands has been reinforced, and at the same time the two existing corridor tunnels have been upgraded with new floor, wall and ceiling finishes and contemporary lighting.
The stations original colour scheme has been renovated on the basis of old drawings and colour archaeological studies. The woodwork is painted in red and green as a continuous colour theme, supplemented by yellow and blue paintwork on selected carpentry details. Fine friezes along the ceiling are exposed and refreshed in the old colour scheme. The original ceiling heights have been restored as far as possible by removing several layers of suspended ceilings.
KHR chose terrazzo coating because the original station properly was created with a terrazzo floor, which since was replaced with tiles. During the renovation it was decided to return to the continuous terrazzo flooring in the station, corridor, staircase and business areas to tribute the original architecture.
