Why take the stairs when you can take the slide?

With the strikes that have threatened air travel this year, combined with the fact that many families are watching their budget, train travel has risen in popularity, replacing flying and rental cars in many holidays abroad. However, visitors to a Dutch railway station may be somewhat bemused to find an adult-sized slide next to the stairs.

Overvecht railway station lies on the Utrecht-Kampen line and has recently undergone a complete revamp. However, the designers thought they would add a somewhat unusual option for travellers in a rush – a slide to reach the tracks faster.

Officially called a ‘transfer accelerator’ it is far more eco-friendly than an energy-guzzling escalator and some would say far more fun. In the evening visitors are treated to classical music being played – making it a rather esoteric experience.

The designers have said they intend it to be used by adults and say that it gives people a more playful way to get to their platform, as well as offering a less risky way to make a dash for the tracks than hurtling down the steep stairwell.

The commuter slide is not the only project which has been unleashed as a way of lifting the local community.

On a slightly less dramatic scale, innovative artist and urban designer Candy Chang has left a supply of coloured chalks for Finnish folk – and tourists – to scribble on the street to contribute to a shared project. Every person is invited to complete two boxes, the first one being ‘When I was little I wanted to be…’ and the second box asking ‘Today I want to be…’, with the boxes in Swedish and English as well as Finnish. The project is designed to get all passers-by to reflect on their life as well as find out about other people’s journey.

The same firm that created the slide in the Dutch railway station have also created several other quirky and fun outdoor projects, including a fully-functioning public kitchen complete with seats, sink and cooking facilities. With the kitchen embedded into a wild green area it is overgrown with grass and herbs for users to help themselves to. Other popular projects include an old car squeezed full of astro-turf and labelled ‘Rent-a-Park’ and environmentally friendly street lighting to improve personal safety which features lines of poetry.

Across Europe there are many cheeky little additions popping up in urban areas to enrich the lives of locals as well as tourists many in the most unlikely of areas.