Ever wondered what Cork will look like 100 years from now?

Local engineering firm Arup has scooped first prize in a competition to reimagine the city of the future.

The winning entry in the Engineers Ireland Design Competition, Cork 2101 – An Engineer Imagines showed Kent Station as a “multimodal transport hub with high-speed rail, railway, water-based harbour transport, trackless trams, bicycle infrastructure and access for vertical take-off and landing vehicles.”

“The hub is the beating heart of the city’s transport network, with swift access to the airport.” the engineers explained

“An indoor-outdoor glass biome connects three levels from the roof market to the railway to the water.”

Sustainability was a strong theme across all the entries this year, with some novel approaches to transport, flood management, housing, and energy. The winning entry was described as having “a clear presentation and vision of a network of blue-green corridors for amenity and connectivity while celebrating the riverside location and heritage of the city, which appealed to the judges.”

Speaking at the opening of an exhibition of the entries at St Peter’s on North Main Street, run in celebration of the 80th Anniversary of the Engineers Ireland Cork Region, Chair of Engineers Ireland Cork, Valerie Fenton expressed her delight with the variety and quality of entrants:

“Our expert judging panel is confident that the creativity and innovation on display in this exhibition will showcase how engineers will be pivotal in developing the solutions to the challenges that will face our city, county, and society into the future.”

A design by Sweco Ireland came in third place, with Mott McDonald Engineering in second place and Arup Engineering taking the first place prize and winner’s cheque of €5,000.