Summary
The CMP operated most of the metro network at the time, but its competitor, the Nord-Sud company, joined the scene by building and operating metro lines 12 and 13. To distinguish itself, it designed stations and their architecture with care.
Stations are spacious, with a wider decorated vaulted ceiling, straight walls that are perpendicular to the platforms, and curved corridors free of right angles.
In Nord-Sud stations, the station manager’s office on the platform is rounded instead of rectangular. The direction of the metro trains is displayed over the tunnels, and the station’s name is written with ceramic tiles, in white over a blue background. The vault is adorned with decorative ceramics stretching from one platform to the other.
Even more impressive: corridors are adorned with friezes displaying a wave pattern, and the “NS” initials can be found wrapping around advertisement frames. The frieze’s colour is indicative of station types: honey brown for regular stations, and green for connecting or terminus stations.
