In Warsaw, in the KondratoWicza station of the M2 line line, Metroteka opened the first underground library designed for commuters. The initiative, inaugurated on September 4, was created to entice travelers to lay the smartphone and return to the pleasure of reading, transforming a place of passage into a cultural and welcoming space.
A collection of 16,000 volumes
The library extends over 150 square meters and houses about 16,000 books. Novels, tourist guides, practical manuals and school texts make up a varied offer, suitable for all ages. The loan system is quick: with a simple contactless passage the desired volume withdraws and returns it to the station or in a deposit available 24 hours a day.
A place to read and socialize
Metroteka is not just shelves full of books. Inside there are reading spaces for adults and children, a common area to study or work and a room dedicated to cultural events. Visitors can use laptops made available or simply relax with a coffee or a free hot chocolate, designed to make the environment familiar and convivial.
The underground hydroponic garden
One of the most surprising elements is the vertical garden: an hydroponic wall that does not require land or natural sunlight. Here basil, oregano, tapes and violets of thought grow, a green touch that makes the library an innovative and pleasant environment, capable of combining nature and technology in an underground urban context.
Reading against cultural decline
The first day of opening were borrowed over 400 books, especially school texts and travel guides. An encouraging figure, considering that Poland records a constant drop in readers: in 2024 only 41% of the population read at least one book, against over 50% in the 90s. A phenomenon that also has in historical roots: during the Second World War the country lost 70% of its libraries and for decades the books were not part of the daily life of many families.
And so the goal of Metroteka is to go beyond the book loan, it is a real cultural mission: to become an educational and social center, to host meetings with authors, workshops and activities for children and adults. A project that demonstrates how also a metro stop can turn into an occasion of shared culture.
A Nie Mówiłem, że Metro to Dobre Miejsce, żeby Czytać?
Na Stacji KondratoWicza Otworzyliśmy Właśnnie Metrotekę. To Pierwsza W Stralicy Publiczna Bibloteka Zlokalizowana na Stacji Warszowskiego Metra.
Zapraszam. Jest naprawdę dobry dojazd
pic.twitter.com/ppnwowrv5n
– Rafał Trzaskowski (@Trzaskowski_) September 4, 2025
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