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| | The main means of entry into the city of Lausanne, the train station is also one of its most important monuments. Between 1992 and 1996, it was ambitiously restored and its remarkable value was underlined. In 1908, a competition was announced for the reconstruction of Lausanne’s train station. An earlier building, dating back to 1856, was no longer sufficient. In 1906, the opening of the Simplon tunnel created an enormous amount of traffic for Lausanne, and the city needed a train station that was suitable for this new situation. The contest was won by the architectural offices of Monod & Laverrière and Taillens & Dubois. The building’s façade is more than 200 metres long. The architects focused their efforts on its use. Four pavilions, the central hall, huge and projecting, and three side pavilions, pulling away asymmetrically. Long bays inspired by German verticalist style punctuate it all, bringing in abundant light.
The ornamentation shows a discreet and refined Art Nouveau style. On the west side, the buffet retains its original look, with the 1916 woodwork and painted panels, depicting the main destinations that were reachable from Lausanne.
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