Bus station Gagarin

photo: © Jaroslav Svoboda, www.jsphoto.cz

Urban design
One city, hundreds of passengers, one shelter - an object glowing, informing about the time and protecting not only passengers from rain, wind, snow, and sun, but also preserving history.

Architectural design
The Gagarin bus stop was created in an unused area between the local primary school and the Otokar Březina Gymnasium. The main reason for the design of the shelter and the surrounding areas was to improve traffic conditions during peak hours of bus connections and, above all, to enhance the safety of passengers using these connections. Its location in the bus bay, within green spaces, allows the shelter not only to fulfill its basic function but also to serve as a place for local residents and visitors to meet, particularly in the summer months when resting areas are utilized.
A distinctive architectural element is the placement of a unique bronze sculpture created by academic sculptor and local native Rostislav Magnit and Brno artist Arnošt Chalupa in 1977. The work, standing since 1981 in a previously overlooked location a few dozen meters closer to the road, found a more dignified position embedded in the outer concrete pillar. Into the spherical shell made in honor of the first human in outer space, Yuri Alexeyevich Gagarin, documents left by our ancestors were added along with reports from the ongoing period in their current tangible form on present-day data carriers.
All that remains is to connect with the preserved wish of the creators of the sculpture, which was found inside: “Made in the hope that the work will last at least a decade of restless times.”

Structural and material design
The main load-bearing elements of the structure are wooden BSH profiles, along with facade boards forming individual vertical panels. The roof, sloping at 15°, is made of two glued CLT panels, which are connected to vertical elements with steel joints. Protection against weather effects is ensured by a trio of tempered glass panes and a side wall made of KVH profiles clad in visible sawn timber, in which a glowing time indicator is integrated, serving as a practical feature for passengers. Another is 12 bicycle racks for use by active passengers. Instead of traditional public lighting, LED strips are recessed into the ceiling panels, which can change the white surface of the shelter into colors of the spectrum at night like a chameleon. The unusualness was positively received by locals but subsequently prohibited by heritage conservation authorities.