Olympiades, Metro station in the 13th arrondissement, Paris, France
Olympiades is a metro station on line 14 in the 13th arrondissement of Paris, located deep underground beneath the rue de Tolbiac, between the rue Nationale and the rue Château-des-Rentiers. The station has a central platform, high ceilings with concrete and wood finishes, and a section of orange lighting on the eastern part of the ceiling that makes it easy to recognize.
The station traces back to a 1989 project called Météor, which planned a line connecting Saint-Lazare to Maison Blanche, though budget constraints meant the southern extension was delayed for years. After a ground collapse near a school in 2003 slowed construction, the station finally opened in June 2007.
The station takes its name from a nearby housing complex whose buildings and plazas are each named after cities that hosted the Olympic Games. Walking through the surrounding streets, visitors notice a strong presence of Asian shops and restaurants that shape the everyday feel of this part of the 13th district.
The station has 4 entrances spread across nearby streets, including one with a lift for people with reduced mobility and escalators at several access points. Outside peak hours, moving through the station is straightforward, though morning and evening commutes tend to bring a steady flow of passengers.
Line 14 is fully automated with no drivers, yet the platform design at this station uses open glass screens rather than the full-height doors found at most other stops on the line. The orange ceiling lights were also a deliberate design choice to give this station a visual identity different from its neighbors on the same line.
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