Sydney’s Gadigal Metro Station has achieved major international recognition after winning Gold in the Transport category at the 2026 World Architecture News (WAN) Awards. The award places the station among the world’s leading examples of transport architecture and highlights Sydney’s growing reputation for design-focused public infrastructure.
Foster + Partners, in collaboration with COX Architecture, designed Gadigal Station, which received recognition for its strong architectural identity and designed passenger experience. Judges noted how the station successfully combines large-scale infrastructure with a refined and contemporary aesthetic, creating a space that is both functional and visually striking.
The station is part of the broader Sydney Metro City & Southwest project, a major urban transport initiative aimed at transforming mobility across the city. Opened in August 2024, Gadigal Station serves around 15,700 passengers and plays a key role in easing congestion in Sydney’s central business district. It has been conceived as an integrated urban precinct that combines efficient metro services located about 25 meters underground with commercial and residential developments rising above. These include Parkline Place, a glass-fronted office tower, and a 29-storey build-to-rent residential building with 234 apartments.
The station also reflects strong cultural and artistic intent as its name recognizes the Gadigal People, the Traditional Custodians of the land which adds cultural significance to the project. Public art further enhances the space, particularly Callum Morton’s installation The Underneath. This large-scale artwork features around 10,000 brightly coloured porcelain enamel tiles, creating two 13-metre-high murals at the station entrances. Inspired by early rail imagery, the murals depict stylised train tunnels in a playful visual style.
Sydney’s Gadigal Metro station combines functionality with refined detailing. Escalator shafts are lined with approximately 1,700 sandstone panels sourced from New South Wales’ Central Coast, grounding the design in local materiality. Platforms feature about 11,000 custom aluminum tubes that improve acoustics while creating a sleek, contemporary look.
Passenger comfort is supported through modern seating, including benches and long timber leaning rails made from Australian spotted gum. Structural elements such as the six 25-meter-high columns at the Park Street entrance add a monumental quality to the space, while full accessibility features, including platform screen doors, enhance safety and usability.
From Gadigal, passengers benefit from fast and reliable connections, with travel times of around 13 minutes to Chatswood, 9 minutes to Sydenham, and 37 minutes to Castle Hill, reinforcing its role as a high-performance transit hub.
Waterloo Metro Station also won Gold in the same category, further spotlighting Sydney’s metro design on the global stage. Together, these projects reflect a shift toward designing transport hubs as civic landmarks that integrate architecture, urban context, and user experience.
The WAN Awards are among the most prestigious global architecture competitions, and this achievement highlights how Sydney’s metro stations are setting new standards in infrastructure design that combines innovation, accessibility, and cultural value
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