Naples Metro Station Completed: EMBT’s Plaza with a Laminated Timber Roof

Spanish architecture studio EMBT has completed Napoli Underground Central Station in Naples, Italy. The project was announced in a report published on 12 November 2026. Located in the Centro Direzionale business district, the 10,000-square-meter building creates a new public plaza on a site that previously had only a simple metro entrance.

How does the timber canopy relate to the plaza?

The station’s roof is formed by laminated timber arches and beams. Part of this structural system is supported by the existing concrete structure. The canopy shelters the ticket-control points and station access routes, while extending into the newly paved plaza in both directions. A church stands on the north side of the plaza, with a newly landscaped area to the south.

The interior floors use Etna and Trani limestone. The shape of the roof carries the geometry of the tracks below ground up to the canopy. The arched arrangement formed by branching supports makes the building read as part of the plaza. Centro Direzionale, where the station is located, is a business district designed by Japanese architect Kenzo Tange in the 1970s. The use of timber and stone adds a distinct material character to the surrounding development, which is dominated by glass and concrete.

Colors inspired by Pompeii frescoes

The underground platforms are clad in striped panels in shades of red, orange and yellow. The color palette references Pompeii frescoes, and silhouettes in similar colors also appear above ground. Benedetta Tagliabue, founder of EMBT, says that the station does not sit directly above archaeological remains, and that the historical references are therefore created through the design.

With this approach, the station is treated not merely as infrastructure providing access to the platforms, but as a public space containing references to the city’s history. Relating the roof geometry to the track layout also makes visible the form of transport infrastructure that would normally remain underground.

Transport and public space in Naples

One of the project’s key interventions is replacing the old metro entrance with a more generous plaza. The roof’s extension into the open space creates a visual and spatial connection between the enclosed parts of the station and the surrounding plaza. The canopy thus becomes more than an element defining the interior: it also forms part of the public realm around the station.

Other projects in Naples also connect underground transport with the urban fabric. The source reports that Anish Kapoor and AL_A designed two sculptural station entrances as part of a project to connect the Traiano district to the underground network. EMBT’s completed building, meanwhile, brings together a plaza, a timber canopy and a colorful interior. The project was shortlisted in the Infrastructure and Transport category of the Dezeen Awards 2026.

Implications for architecture and visualization workflows

For architecture firms working on public transport buildings, the station offers an example of considering the existing structure, new roof and plaza in relation to one another. Visualization teams can also use the arched timber canopy, limestone paving and colorful platform surfaces to communicate material and spatial decisions. The source does not disclose software, hardware, licensing or project costs; nor does it share detailed construction information on the connection between the roof and the existing concrete structure.