The ‘submarine’ of Petřiny metro station
The Prague metro turned 50 years old last year. To mark the occasion, we explore some of the iconic stations on the Czech capital's metro network. Metro station Petřiny lies only a short walk away from the Břevnov monastery and the battlefield of the Battle of White Mountain in the Thirty Years War.
Jan Nevyhoštěný, a journalist at the online magazine zdopravy.cz, is our guide, and promises to help us find a bubble and submarine hiding in the station.
We begin at the northern vestibule of the station. Before we head down, could you give us a brief introduction to the Petřiny district?
“Petřiny is home to the oldest housing estates in Prague. The apartment buildings here are among the first of their type, beginning to flourish in the early 1960s. At the time, this district was considered affluent, and it was here that government officials lived.”
“A note-worthy building stands right here. It is an eclectic aesthetic work of Vlado Milunić, the very architect who helped design the famous Dancing House in Prague.”
“Situated to its left is another historic building - ‘Hotelový dům’ (‘Hotel House’). Given Petřiny’s relatively high altitude, it was on this building’s roof that partisans installed transmitters to broadcast Czech Television during the Russian invasion in 1968.”
“Finally, forest park Obora Hvězda (‘Star Game Reserve’) is just a stone's throw away. It is a huge wooded area popular with Prague residents who utilise the green space for sports, meetups with friends and Sunday strolls.”
Now that we know a little more about the area, let's head inside the station and down the escalators…
“The escalators we are standing on are interesting for a variety of reasons. First of all, they are seriously long - 55 metres. Petřiny is one of the deepest stations in Prague, almost 38 metres below ground level.”
“Also, these escalators are very windy. Although we are underground, don't forget that the station is on top of a hill, causing a draft. Often commuters wear hats and scarves on the escalators. Obviously the architects hadn't thought of the wind, or at least underestimated it, and the issue hasn't been resolved.”
Petřiny is one of four metro stations recently opened as part of an extension of Line A to Nemocnice Motol. What were the reasons for the project?
“The four new stations were opened in 2015, but the project dates back many years and was the subject of intense discussions. It was eventually agreed that the extension of line A from Dejvická should serve the densely populated north-west of the city. However, Prague authorities were also looking to improve connectivity to the airport, a problem that has still not been resolved. And with good reason: then-mayor of Prague, Pavel Bém, had previously served as mayor of Prague 6, where Petřiny is located. He did everything possible to ensure the metro would serve the residents whom he had elected him in the past. That's how it was decided that metro line A would not lead directly to the airport, but rather to Petřiny and Nemocnice Motol.”
So, will the metro ever serve the airport?
“Plans for a high-speed rail line to the airport are currently being explored, but the project probably won't see the light of day for many years to come. Nevertheless, the service to Nemocnice Motol (Motol Hospital) is still welcome. The station is right at the entrance of a key hospital visited by thousands, or even tens of thousands people daily.”
What makes Petřiny different to other stations on line A?
“Each of the four new stations inaugurated ten years ago were designed by a different architect. Hence, they stand out from the older stations with uniform architecture in the city centre. Each station has its own look, with architect Jiří Pešata responsible for Petřiny. From an architectural perspective, Petřiny is certainly the most interesting of the four. The surveillance post for metro staff in the centre of the station is shaped curiously, to say the least. Its round window resembles a porthole, and a spiral staircase is hidden inside.”
“The station’s other characteristic architectural feature is the huge concrete monolith engraved with the station's name. It quickly earned the nickname ‘bublina’ (the bubble) because of its shape, even though others persist in seeing female attributes in it.”
“Finally, I should mention the tiling, intentionally designed to reflect the two contrasting tones of tiles on old Prague pavements.”
You write for a webpage about transport, and have reported on the line A extension and Petřiny station. Is there a particular construction site memory you would like to share?
“I've been following the creation of Petřiny station right from the get go. I was lucky enough to visit the construction site amid ongoing drilling. For the first time in the Czech Republic, tunnel boring machines (TBMs) were used. It was a source of pride for the company leading the project. Given the new line was to run as far as Nemocnice Motol, the site managers went to the hospital and asked children to name the TBMs. That's why the first one is named ‘Adéla’ and the second ‘Tonda’ - and the media used those titles right up until the project’s completion.”
Did you know?
In November 2023, a new information and advertising system consisting of 386 LED panels was implemented in the tunnel between Dejvická and Bořislavka stations on line A. As the metro passes, the rapid succession of the panels creates a moving image. Such technology is already used in Madrid, Rome and Zurich, among other places, but Prague is the first city in Central or Eastern Europe to do so.
The Prague Transport Company (DPP) has made no secret of its enthusiasm for the new advertising spaces, which could generate additional revenue of 20 million czech crowns a year for the public company. The project has already attracted the interest of major perfume and shoe brands, with 36 tunnels to be equipped with LED panels in the future, according to DPP. The system is due to be rolled out more widely from Náměstí Míru - Můstek (line A), Smíchovské nádraží - Národní Třída (line B) and Náměstí Republiky - Invalidovna (line B).
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