Due to failed planning and lack of readjustment, the highway that leads from Beirut to Jounieh suffers from various problems that hinder the purpose of the highway. In our design studio “Aal Autostrad”, each pair of student was responsible for tackling the problems in one of the six strips the highway was divided into. The main problem in the strip that elongates from Nahr El Kalb to Fouad Chehab Stadium was that the highway narrows down into 2 lanes at different points of the highway, causing irregular traffic jams at that point.
In order to tackle this issue, we decided that some of the spaces along the sides of the highway can be relocated into our project to allow for a 3rd lane to be introduced. Thus, along with the bus station, we created spaces where these shops can be allocated.
Our project is divided into two main stations, one that serves the highway and one that serves the transversal areas around it. And due to the steep topographical nature of the site, the two separate stations exists in the same building on two different ground floors; one that is on the level of the highway and another on the level of the first parallel road in the area above.
Another restored building on the opposite side of the highway serves Kaslik area. Our project then is comprised of three main loops of transportation, created by two different buildings that are connected through parking spaces and a pedestrian bridge.