China spends $7.8B building world’s largest train station that makes NYC’s Grand Central look minuscule
Published on Oct 09, 2025 at 9:20 AM (UTC+4)
by Molly Davidson
Last updated on Oct 09, 2025 at 4:57 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Mason Jones
Forget New York City’s Grand Central because China just built the world’s largest train station.
The new Chongqing East Railway Station is more megastructure than terminal, a $7.8 billion monument to movement that officially opened in June.
The space unfolds like a city within a city, all glass, steel, and motion stitched together.
And yet, for all its steel and spectacle, the design is rooted in nature – a man-made forest of light, bamboo, and motion.
DISCOVER SBX CARS – The global premium auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
How big is the world’s largest train station?
Set just outside the megacity of Chongqing, Chongqing East is now the world’s largest train station.
The $7.8 billion project spans 1.22 million square meters, the equivalent of 170 football pitches.
It’s five times the size of Grand Central Station in New York, with 15 platforms, 29 tracks, and enough capacity for 16,000 passengers every hour.
Step inside, and the station feels more like an airport terminal.
There are 5,000 seats (1,000 fitted with USB ports), global food chains sitting beside local eateries, and digital wayfinding screens in every direction.
The design draws straight from Chongqing itself.
It features columns shaped like huangjue trees, vents sculpted into flowers, and bamboo-scroll signs welcoming passengers.
A glass curtain roof floods the concourse with sunlight, turning a space built for speed into one that still feels calm.
At full stride, the station connects Chongqing to Shanghai, Chengdu, and Xiamen – a vital artery linking China’s inland regions with its coastal cities in under eight hours.
It’s a feat of engineering designed to move millions, but also to impress every single person walking through it.
From China’s megastations to Detroit’s reborn landmark
Not every train station is built from scratch.
Some get a second life instead.
In Detroit, the once-abandoned Michigan Central Station has come roaring back thanks to Ford.
The automaker bought the crumbling 1913 landmark in 2018 for $90 million and spent years restoring it after it sat empty since 1988.
Now it’s no longer a passenger hub but it’s a proving ground for the future of mobility.
Inside, startups are developing transport tech, drone networks, and innovations that could reshape the auto industry.
Whether reborn or brand new, both prove that train stations are no longer just about catching trains.
China’s $7.8 billion megahub might make Grand Central feel quaint, but that’s the point.
Chongqing East isn’t a railway station built just for locomotives, it’s one built to make history.
DISCOVER SBX CARS: The global premium car auction platform powered by Supercar Blondie
Molly Davidson is a Junior Content Writer at Supercar Blondie. Based in Melbourne, she holds a double Bachelor’s degree in Arts/Law from Swinburne University and a Master’s of Writing and Publishing from RMIT. Molly has contributed to a range of magazines and journals, developing a strong interest in lifestyle and car news content. When she’s not writing, she’s spending quality time with her rescue English staffy, Boof.
