photo: Paris by Train/Paris Gare du Nord reconstruction project postponed until 2026
The completion of the project for the reconstruction of the Paris Gare du Nord to increase the size of its area by more than 3 times has been postponed until 2026. Previously, it was planned to carry out work on its transformation before the Rugby World Cup in the fall of 2023 and the Summer Olympic Games in 2024.
The concession agreement was concluded with SA Gare du Nord 2024 (StatioNord) - a joint venture within the real estate company Ceetrus (66%), which is part of the Auchan group and took over the financing, design, construction and operation issues, as well as SNCF Gares & Connexions - a subsidiary of the infrastructure operator of the French National Railways Society SNCF Réseau.
According to the initial version of the transformation of the station with a 155-year history, it was envisaged that its total area would be increased to 124 thousand m2 due to an additional 88 thousand m2, of which about half was allocated for various kinds of cultural facilities, sports clubs, as well as retail outlets and offices.
SNCF Gares & Connexions, back in July 2021, was warned of an increase in the total cost of work on the project to more than 1.5 billion euros and significant delays in the work, which means that it will not be possible to complete them before the start of the 2024 Olympic Games. the end of 2020 amounted to 500 million euros.
After having had to abandon the original design in collaboration with Ceetrus, Gares & Connexions promised to quickly adapt the project to new realities so that it could be implemented before the sporting events of 2023 and 2024. A less ambitious version of the project provides for a 15% reduction in retail space and excludes the creation of an auditorium.
This version of the project envisages the reconstruction of the Eurostar terminal before the 2023 Rugby World Cup, as well as the construction of a new departure terminal before the start of the 2024 Olympics. However, the commissioning of the entire complex by the end of 2025 is no longer planned.
Before the arrival of the pandemic, the Gare du Nord station served up to 700 thousand passengers daily. By 2030, this number is planned to increase to 900 thousand.