Papafi station to open to the public next weekend Metro Thessaloniki.

The station will be available to the general public as part of OPEN HOUSE THESSALONIKI 2022. This is one of the two sites with which Attiko Metro SA is participating in this recognized institution, organized for the 11th time.

There are two main goals for including metro facilities in this year’s event:

1. Showcase the work of Attiko Metro architects, who, in addition to the complex work of designing convenient and functional stations and other facilities that are part of an extremely complex network, have been trained to work with a variety of engineering and scientific specialties. who as a whole have acquired extensive know-how and developed skills that allow them to offer immediate and flexible solutions to the unpredictable problems that naturally arise in an underground project.
2. To acquaint the residents of Thessaloniki Metro with the architecture of the stations and the functionality of this new environment, which will enter their daily lives at the end of next year.

A few words about Papafi Station

Papafi Station is the seventh station on the main line of the Thessaloniki Metro in the direction of train traffic to the New Railway Station.

It was built on a plot of land owned by the Papatheos Foundation, which also houses an important historical institution of the city, at the intersection of Konstantinou Karamanlis Avenue and Papafi and Simeonidis Streets.

During peak hours, a train with a capacity of 450 passengers in each direction will pass through the station every minute and a half.

Access

The station has two main entrances located on both sides of Karamanlis Avenue at Papafi height. The western access at the intersection of Karamanli and Papafi avenues includes a fixed staircase 2.10 meters wide and a pair of escalators (one staircase to ascend – one staircase to descend).

The eastern sidewalk exit of Karamanlis Avenue (towards the Papafeio Foundation) also includes a pair of escalators for the same purpose.

There is also an elevator next to the east entrance that serves the needs of the station and connects the street level (0) to the ticketing level (-1). Finally, there are two emergency exits connecting the platform level (-3) through the electro-mechanical rooms level (-2) and the ticketing level (-1) to the street level. Emergency exits are located at both ends of the station in the courtyard of the Papatheos Foundation.

The entrances to the station will be covered with glass canopies, consisting of a metal frame, an aluminum profile and 22 mm thick glass that has not yet been installed to protect against damage. A skylight has also been placed at street level, which is covered by a glass structure similar to rooftops and allows daylight to enter the passenger traffic area on the first underground level. Like everyone else, Papafi Station has been designed in accordance with established legislation to be accessible to people with disabilities (PWD).

In addition to the two entrances to the station, a stainless steel pole about 3.00 meters high will be installed, on which self-luminous elements with the line diagram, the name of the station, as well as the future Thessaloniki Metro sign will be placed.

The location of the entrances on Google maps can be found at the following links:

https://goo.gl/maps/7MsTr4auJVAW2xGp8

https://goo.gl/maps/sENqXugyhudSa7DE8

General description of the station

The station follows the typical design features of all stations in Thessaloniki, which, of course, have been adapted to the real conditions of the location.

In this case, the central core of the social movement was also created, including the ticketing level, the electromechanical zones level, the platform level, escalators and a fixed staircase with an elevator.

Thessaloniki stations have two to four underground levels depending on the depth of the tunnel construction. The stations that approach Pirikausto are the deepest, as one of the most important requirements of the project was that the archaeological horizon should remain untouched by the passage of two tunnel boring machines (TBM = tunnel boring machine).

The Papafi station is three-storey with a track depth of 20.50 m from ground level and, like all Thessaloniki metro stations, has platform screen doors (PSD) to ensure maximum passenger safety, increase the useful space of the platforms, reduce the need for ventilation and smoke removal. , improved operation of the public address system and the possibility of future air conditioning of all public areas of the station. In practice, the most important contribution of the PSD is to eliminate any possibility of any user being on the subway tracks or gaining access to the tunnels.

The main building of the station was built with dividing walls 1.00 m thick (the standard method of building 13 stations), and the part of the station in the first basement (-1), which is outside the main building and includes the entrances, was with piles and walls.

Parallel to the partitions there is a secondary inner wall 0.20 m thick made of optical bricks, at all levels. Ventilated gap between bulkhead and secondary wall 0.50m.

The ventilation shafts of the tunnel were located on both sides of the central square of the station. These shafts are connected to the train tunnels and are equipped with state-of-the-art technology to remove air from the tunnels in the event of a fire.

From street level to pier

Stationary escalators and an elevator from street level end at level -1, that is, at the ticketing level. This design choice, which seems to be taken for granted, could not be applied to all stations.

At the two central stations of Agia Sophia and Venizelos, the ticketing level was placed on the second basement floor, since at level -1, on the first, the pre-existing Pantorrei pipeline of Thessaloniki was bricked up and various electromechanical zones were installed, while in the second it will start from the following April return of temporarily disconnected archaeological finds.

Ground floor (-1)

At the ticketing level, two (2) sanitary areas (one for each gender) of sufficient size for the expected service, the ticket issuer’s office, staff quarters and some technical rooms have been built and equipped, and over the next year six (6) vending machines issuance and six (6) entry and exit gates where tickets will be checked, a fully modern ticketing system that will use the most modern and extremely popular transaction methods with digital and contactless means.

From the level of the ticket office and immediately after the future-controlled passage through the entry-exit gates, stationary and escalators and an elevator to the pier begin. Communication between these two levels is carried out by two pairs of escalators (a pair of ascending and a pair of descending), an elevator and a fixed staircase with a clear width of 1.80 meters around the elevator. Even from level -1 there is access to two emergency ladders located at both ends of the station.

Second basement (-2)

The second underground level of the station (-2), i.e. the level of electromechanical structures, will remain unjustified in its importance, inaccessible and unknown to the public and network users, since access to the premises included in it will be allowed only to specialized and certified personnel of the metro operating company . This is the space where most of the objects and systems located at the station are located, absolutely necessary for the smooth and safe operation of the metro.

However, it is traversed by stairs and an elevator leading from the ticketing level to the flat platform and is accessed via landings. Also, from the level of the electromechanical rooms, there is again access to emergency stairwells from both ends of the station.

Third basement (-3)

The dock level is divided into three zones. Two track spaces and a passenger space located between the other two in the form of two tunnels were built in the Thessaloniki metro network. The passenger area is separated from the track area by curtains – dock doors (PSD), made of suitable glass and stainless steel supports. Above the PSD, along the entire length of the dock, there is a front made of stainless steel shutters. Ventilation shutters are placed behind the shutters.

On each facade wall of the station there are two metal fire doors through which, in case of emergency, passengers exit the station either into the tunnel or to the emergency exit stairwells.

Project materials

• All floors in common areas are covered with gray polished granite slabs. The handicapped paths are red granite slabs with notches, while the hazard markings will be made of yellow flake artificial granite slabs, which is a recent regulation requiring the replacement of standard slabs that have already been installed in accordance with Attiko Metro’s general regulations. specifications.
• The walls are faced with suspended slabs of polished or hewn gray granite in standard sizes. Aluminum panels of standard sizes are hung above them.
• The station’s central core was clad in suspended aluminum panels in standard sizes, a different color for each station.
• All parapets around the central core are glass with stainless steel supports and stainless steel railings.
• All escalators from EEE to EA have glass parapets with integrated LED lighting. The lower surface (mat) of the spiral staircases was lined with metal panels.

The preliminary study of the Papafi Station was prepared by the architect Chrysula Custeni and the final study, as well as the applied study, by the architect Maria Maggioru.

As visitors to OPEN HOUSE THESSALONIKI 2022 will be able to see, the result of their work, as well as of all other participants in its design and construction, is an understandable, friendly, bright and functional station, which predisposes the future metro user to the fast and safe movement that will be offered to him.

Instructions for visitors

Papafi Station will be open on weekends from 10.00 to 15.00.

According to the organisers’ policy, no reservations are made, admission is free for everyone, and visitors are encouraged to arrive on time at the buildings they wish to visit, as there are no tours outside opening hours, so if there is a wait, they may not get on the tour, not excepting an extension for those who will stand in line.

And also to inspect ATTIKO METRO facilities, as these are areas with special security requirements, since, on the one hand, until they are handed over, the zones retain their designation of the construction site, and on the other hand, any deviation from predetermined routes can lead to a zone, which is electrified with a voltage of 750 volts, visitors must follow the established routes only. Those who do not follow the instructions will be asked to leave.

Photo and video shooting will be free.