Taichung Green Corridor | Taichung, Taiwan | Mecanoo and S.D Atelier


The 1.7km long former railway line crossing downtown Taichung was an important catalyst for the development of the old city. The railway’s historical value plays an important role in the revitalisation of the urban realm on which it sits.

Sustainable life, sustainable history & culture


Although in the past, the rail line was a mean of connection, the disused railway acts more as a divider due to its challenging location on the dyke, which impedes the circulation from one side of the tracks to the other.

The current proposal will reuse the rail line to connect the different parts of the city in a sustainable way by creating a green corridor for biodiversity and including bike/pedestrian lanes to better cater for the needs of the community.

Within this linear site, the sustainable development covered a wide range of planning and design factors including urban regeneration, public participation, historic preservation, green and water resources, and circulation routes for pedestrians and bikes.

Relying on Mecanoo’s 30-years urban planning experience, the design will shape a people-oriented green corridor, complementing the Green River’s waterfront.

Inspiration


To maintain the area’s strong historical character, and set a coherent, recognisable theme for the project, the new circulation system layout relies on the junction railway track pattern.
Based on the visual language of the railway infrastructure, the routes branch out to integrate the existent and future planned functions.

A linear park in the city centre

We define the green corridor as a continuous public park in the centre of the city, which will:

  • support the conservation and development of the area’s flora and fauna
  • improve connections for pedestrians and bike users in Taichung centre
  • integrate existing and newly added functions to the area into a coherent linear park

A destination for all 


The green corridor will become a destination and invite users to explore and enjoy the green qualities of the park. Based on different properties of the dyke, programmes such as herb garden, street fitness, tribune, playground, viewpoint and waterpark create an ideal place for leisure and recreation activities. All the proposed programmes are designed to intensify the use of the area for the local and wider Taichung community while promoting a more coherent city infrastructure.

Former rail infrastructure on a dike with slopes on both sides: keep the existing slopes and create public routing up and down the dike.
Former rail infrastructure on a dike with walls: keep the existing walls and create public spaces in the upper and lower level.
Connection to other infrastructure: activate the connection to the water level.
Former rail infrastructure bridges: keep existing bridges and create new relations and public connections.

Design team | Mecanoo and local landscape firm S.D Atelier, ARIA architect & planners.
Design | 2017
Construction | 2018-2019
Client | Taichung City Government, Taichung, Taiwan.

About Damian Holmes 3253 Articles
Damian Holmes is the Founder and Editor of World Landscape Architecture (WLA). He is a registered landscape architect (AILA) working in international design practice in Australia. Damian founded WLA in 2007 to provide a website for landscape architects written by landscape architects. Connect on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/damianholmes/