Central Railway Building

Architecture

The principal (south) façade is two storeys high and 360 feet (110 m) in length with three projections: a large porte-cochère in the centre and semi-octagonal towers at either end. The porte-cochère consists of a five bay arcade with buttresses of corbelled brickwork at each corner. Each of the two vehicle entrances is spanned by a large pointed arch. The porte-cochère opens on to a 12 feet (3.7 m) wide continuous veranda with pointed arch openings, the tympana of which are filled with louvre frames for ventilation and shade. The veranda on the second storey wraps around the porte-cochère in a narrower strip supported by concrete brackets set on corbelled brick footings. This strip of veranda is covered with a sloping shingled roof. The entrance foyer is surmounted by a hemispherical dome. The blocks behind the semi-octagonal terminal projections are three storeys high.