The Gare du Nord: Parisian Topographies of Exchange

Abstract

Résumé La gare du Nord : topographies parisiennes d’échanges À la gare du Nord se croisent de manière parfois explosive des populations diverses, des trajectoires, des pratiques et des représentations hétérogènes. L’auteur compare les aménagements de la gare, de 1864 et d’aujourd’hui, pour montrer comment le passage du modèle de contrôles spatiaux d’exclusion à celui d’espace ouvert fondé sur l’idée de la transparence a engendré des nouvelles pratiques de contrôle et de surveillance. Puis sont examinés les rapports entre la vision des urbanistes d’un « pôle d’échanges » et les pratiques des échanges qui existent dans la gare. Cet article met en évidence comment ces pratiques d’échange sont fondamentales dans la production et la performance des frontières sociales, dans cette nouvelle configuration de la prétendue démocratisation de l’espace public parisien.

Designing Paris Gare du Nord for pedestrians or for clients? New retail patterns as flow optimization strategies

“…As a result, there is now intense vertical and horizontal movement between the four levels, particularly at rush hour, although this does not create a universal mix. On the contrary, the occupancy and movement patterns in the station's diff erent levels are socially very distinct (Kleinman, 2012). The top level, set aside for the cross-Channel train, is mainly occupied by upper middle-class international customers, with large spending capacity, whereas the two underground levels are used by regional commuters travelling from and to the northern suburbs, the poorest in Ile-de-France.…”

Introduction to Special Issue: Bus Stations in Africa

“…preprint version - The tendency to associate transport hubs with danger, depravity, and, for that matter, "dirty work," is by no means limited to Africa. One just needs to think of European railway stations, such as the Gare du Nord in Paris (Kleinman 2012), which are also considered to be "places of danger, associated with lawlessness and suspect activity" (Bissell 2010, 633; see also Richards and MacKenzie 1986). As with European railway stations, however, popular perceptions of Africa's bus stations and their occupational groups change over time.…”

Adventures in Infrastructure: Making an African Hub in Paris

“…Underground projects tend to go over budget as they are met with the obstructions of existing circuits, a crisscross of electricity wiring, catacombs, sewage and subway tunnels, built up over centuries. At the same time, there are not enough channels that work against the logic of capital circulation and population control built into the system since the early nineteenth century (Kleinman ; Soppelsa ). For example, there are few intra‐suburban connections and many suburban residents complain about the Paris‐centric design.…”