Held at UIC Headquarters and co-organised with SNCF Gares & Connexions, the 56th Watford Conference focused on “Railway Infrastructure and Urban Transformation: From City Centres to Suburbs – How Rail Shapes Growth, Regeneration, and Mobility”. Its programme brought together presentations, discussions and technical visits on railway architecture and the integration of rail into the urban environment, and highlighted the exhibition of 2025 Brunel Awards.
On Wednesday, the conference opened with a focus on the links between station design, transport networks and the urban environment. The first session, dedicated to urban transformation and station-led development, featured projects and perspectives from France, Japan, the United States and the Netherlands, among other countries. Technical visits were then scheduled, followed by a reception at UIC Headquarters.
Thursday’s sessions addressed two complementary topics: connectivity and mobility integration, followed by people-centred station design. The programme covered multimodal hubs, wayfinding, safety and inclusive design study cases from Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, Romania and the United States. Further technical visits and a reception at AREP / SNCF Gares & Connexions completed the day’s schedule.
On Friday, the programme turned to station identity, railway heritage and the role of stations as places connected to civic life. Presentations from Japan, France, the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom were scheduled to explore the adaptive reuse of railway assets, the future of historic stations, and the contribution of art to local identity. The conference programme concluded with a closing session, the Watford Group General Assembly and the traditional Candlestick Dinner.
Across the three days, the conference programme invited participants to consider stations not only as access points to the rail network, but also as part of wider urban transformation. It reflected the shared mission of UIC and the Watford Group to foster international exchange on station design and the integration of railway infrastructure into its surroundings.
