Beyond a transport node? What residents want from transforming railway stations

Transport planning authorities and operators in various countries are planning far-reaching transformations of secondary railway stations into so-called mobility hubs with the aim to foster rail-based and intermodal mobility. The transformations of railway stations do not only affect the transportation network, but also the urban fabric surrounding railway stations. Projects of this nature, therefore, require a deeper understanding of the preferences of local residents, the key users of such hubs. We developed a three-stage adaptive survey experiment with a random sample of 2,028 adult residents in the perimeter of three secondary railway stations in Switzerland to identify preferences towards four potential railway station functions: public transport provision, access to multimodality, retail and services, and stations as a public space. The main findings are that the transportation function is the top priority, followed by the public space function. Other functions, such as retail, services, and multimodal mobility, are less preferred by residents. The findings reveal the importance of also considering non-commercial functions of these hubs and that residents are viewing railway station as more than merely transport hubs or shopping centres; they are considered key neighbourhood components that shape local identities through their role as public spaces.