Central Station

We start the walk in front of the entrance to the Central Station, at the car-free Europakruispunt. The Central Station (1952) was the final piece of the underground Noord-Zuid train connection. The construction of that 'Jonction' took more than 50 years, partly because the construction was interrupted by two world wars. Along the tunnel route, despite protests, hundreds of residents were expropriated and various working-class neighborhoods were demolished. Only the street name and the façade sculptures on the left and right of the station entrance still remind us of the vanished Putterijwijk, which was located between the Grote Markt and the Saint Michael's Cathedral. The busy road built on top of the train tunnel remains a scar through the city. Starting from the 1950s, the construction of office buildings for government services along that roadway created a fracture between the upper and lower city. Enter the large ticket hall of the station. Victor Horta (who passed away in 1947) and his pupil Maxime Brunfaut combined station services on underground and ground-level floors, with shops on the street side and offices on the upper floors. Horta's fascination with light is evident in the glass ceiling. The spacious staircase leading down to the platforms is thus bathed in a sea of light.

→ Take the passage under the smaller, double staircase, towards 'Ravensteingalerij'. Climb the stairs at the end of the passage and walk through the Ravensteingalerij to the end.

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