<
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/sep/07/warsaw-opens-metro-station-express-library-smartphones>
"An “express” library has opened in a new metro station in Warsaw, aiming to
provide an appealing cultural space to encourage residents and commuters to
forgo smartphones in favour of books and, thanks to fresh herbs growing in a
vertical garden, a dash of subterranean greenery too.
The stylish Metroteka, which opened this week in the Kondratowicza M2 line
metro station in the Polish capital’s Targówek district, offers two reading
areas for adults and children, as well as a space for public readings and
events.
About 16,000 books are on offer in the 150 sq metre and can be borrowed through
an “express” checkout machine using contactless chips. Readers can return them
on site or through a street-level parcel locker for books, available 24/7.
Visitors can study or work in a communal area, borrow a laptop to browse the
internet, or simply sit down with a complimentary coffee or hot chocolate to
unwind after rush hour travel on the metro.
Its hydroponic garden wall which operates without natural sunlight or soil to
grow fresh herbs like basil and oregano, and flowers including nasturtiums and
pansies.
“Our dream is for Metroteka to become an educational and cultural centre, and
not just a place where you borrow your books from,” says the deputy director of
Targówek library, Grażyna Strzelczak-Batkowska. The wall, for example, will be
used for debates on food security, sustainability and “how to save the world”
in the face of climate change, she says.
She says the unique subterranean location brings the library closer to busy
commuters, “both geographically and in terms of time you need to spend on
getting the book”. “I always joke that books are not made of glass – you can
just pop in, grab a few, throw them on a self-checkout machine, and that’s it,
you’re out on a new adventure,” she says.
More than 400 books were leased on the first day, mostly recommended school
readings, as well as travel guides and “all sorts of how-to books”."
Via N. E. Felibata and Susan ****
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
