The Miami High Speed Transit Terminal is a proposal to bring high speed rail into the downtown center of Miami. The proposal is to construct a transit center within the downtown waterfront which simultaneously serves as train terminal, ferry dock and public space, with an adjacent office tower. The goal for the project is to combine the program with an environmentally influenced approach. The train terminal and ferry dock contain large spaces where air-conditioning is un-economical, so alternative cooling methods are explored. Due to the high level of humidity in Miami, many passive methods of cooling such as adding water into the air to cool it, no longer becomes effective. The solution is to keep the air in a constant state of movement, alleviating any stagnant air.

In order to achieve the ventilation requirements on a large scale, a solar thermal chimney is proposed at along the side of the office tower. The solar chimney will consist of large tubes that run down the spine of the train terminal and ferry dock. The tubes collect solar heat gain and with the assistance of vent fans exhaust the rising hot air from the terminal, creating a drag current throughout the station.

This post was submitted by HUMANistics.net + Matt Goldsberry.