Transport hub

Ferlach students plan their own bus stop

The new bus stop was designed by HTL students.

(Bild: Arbeiter Dieter)

Industrial design students at HTL Ferlach planned their own bus stop. The municipality was impressed by the young people's plans and realized the project in record time.

The Sparkassenplatz in the gunsmith town is an important traffic junction in the Rosental valley. Not only are numerous commuters to be found there every day, but also hundreds of students who attend the HTL in Ferlach. And a group from the school's industrial design branch set itself the goal of beautifying and upgrading the transport hub. There was only room for a few pupils under the existing bus shelters and they often had to wait in the rain for their connection.

"That's why the pupils and principal Silke Bergmoser approached us," explains Ferlach's mayor Ingo Appé. And the municipality was enthusiastic about the project right from the start and immediately commissioned the pupils.

"All the students' proposals were then worked out by a diploma working group," Bergmoser adds to the "Krone". The plans were then handed over to an architectural firm. And in a record construction time of just three months, the barrier-free bus stop was finally completed. 

An in-house PV system supplies the electricity.

(Bild: Arbeiter Dieter)

State-of-the-art technology for those waiting
It was not only the modern design of the bus shelter that was important to the students, but also its functionality. A large monitor provides a good overview of arrival and departure times. The bus stop is also equipped with WLAN and a cell phone charging station. 

"The energy supply is provided by a PV system anchored to the curved roof structure," explains Thomas Laussegger, City Councillor for Construction. A total of 200,000 euros was invested in the new building, of which 140,000 euros was subsidized.