On July 15, Tokyo Metro began operating the second basement concourse and new ticket gates at Toranomon Hills Station on the Hibiya Line.
The project is a joint effort with the Urban Renaissance Agency to develop the surrounding community. A concourse level will be built below the existing basement level platform level, connecting to the Toranomon Hills Station Tower, which will be completed in July (the building will open in the fall).
In addition, an underground passage to Toranomon Station on the Ginza Line has been connected to the Toranomon Hills towers and bus terminal, allowing visitors to come and go without going above ground. In conjunction with this change, all ticket gates on the first basement floor have been eliminated.
Since the Toranomon Hills Station was originally planned to be completed in time for the Tokyo 2020 Games, it was in a temporary form until yesterday, when it opened on June 6, 2020. After the opening of the station, excavation of the underground and construction of new buildings continued, and the station is now complete. Although the Station Tower could not be seen in its entirety as of today, the vast area of approximately 7.5 hectares with a total floor space of approximately 800,000 m2 is expected to be completed in the fall.
The Station Tower will house the Hotel Toranomon Hills, which will bear Hyatt’s first-ever “Unbound Collection by Hyatt” brand in Tokyo, as well as TOKYO NODE, a gallery and hall, and a commercial and dining area with approximately 80 stores.
Commenting on the completion of the underground concourse, Yukinori Todoroki, Director of the Urban Renaissance Agency East Japan Urban Renaissance Division, said, “The entire station district space is finally complete. We hope that the circulation will be improved and the area will become more lively.” Kazutaka Kawakami, Manager of Construction Office No. 2, Improvement and Construction Department, Railways Division, Tokyo Metro, said, “The original concept was to make the circulation wait, but in order to meet Tokyo 2020, it had been in the form it was in yesterday. It is a new initiative to bring sunlight into the subway platforms,” he explained.
© Source travel watch