When the Toledo station was halfway through construction, municipal authorities decided that adding a new entrance at Piazzetta Montecalvario would be a smart political move. This square is located in the center of the Quartieri Spagnoli, the former settlement of Spanish troops, a very humble, particularly conflictive neighborhood and a typical setting for a neorealist film.

From the start we knew we couldn’t pierce the center of the neighborhood’s only little square, with its extremely narrow streets, by inserting a metro access staircase. Instead, we proposed to free it up entirely by placing the entrance through one of the perimeter buildings (currently used as a garage for three taxis), as is done in many London stations. When this alternative proved unfeasible due to the ownership of the Church and the acquired rights of the taxi drivers, we decided to take advantage of the slope of the terrain to create a completely level square, which would allow access to the metro almost at ground level via the street below. The connection between the uneven streets and the horizontal square was resolved with gently sloping, comfortable staircases.

The Piazzetta Montecalvario was transformed into an outdoor living room, developed on a single level, suitable for pedestrians and welcoming for the children from the school across the street. We wanted to incorporate plants and trees, not only to create shaded areas but also to gift the neighborhood a small "green lung" in a place where there was no vegetation at all.

This second exit of the Toledo station did also benefit from the creative collaboration of renowned artists. A special mention should be made of the 70-meter frieze that borders the tapis roulants, where Oliviero Toscani placed around 2,000 Neapolitans in a "family portrait" that, over the years, is becoming a historical document.

"The most impressive metro station in Europe" – Daily Telegraph

Extended article in Corriere della Sera