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All Italy Lainate Area di Servizio Villoresi Est

Area di Servizio Villoresi Est

This Volcano-like rest area was designed by architect Giulio Ceppi built according to energy efficiency and ecological footprint standards.

Lainate, Italy

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Area di Servizio Villoresi Est   Pivari / CC BY-SA 3.0
Area di Servizio Villoresi Est   Pivari / CC BY-SA 3.0
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Area di Servizio Villoresi Ovest   Dans / CC BY-SA 4.0
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About

On one of the busiest stretches of the Milano-Laghi motorway, a silver volcano reaches 30 meters into the sky. At night, it lights up bright red. This distinctive building is a more recent addition to a roadside service station that has been standing on this highway since the 1950s.

The service area originally opened in 1958 as a parking lot on the Autostrada dei Laghi, the current A8 and A9, direction from Milan to Como for the roadside restaurant on the other side of the road (reachable by a pedestrian tunnel). Designed by the architect Angelo Bianchetti, it featured a pyramid-shaped white scaffolding over a circular building holding a service station, bar, and restaurant. Life magazine called it "an expression of Italian luxury."

In 2013, another structure rose on the other side of the highway. Designed by architect Giulio Ceppi, the goal of the project was to establish a dialogue with the historical service station. It was built with sustainability in mind, focusing on energy efficiency and minimizing the building's ecological footprint.

The laminated wood structure of the roof of the new Autogrill creates a curved volume across a 4,000-square-meter shelter, which detaches from the ground to rise up to 28 meters above the main body. Each axis has a different radius of curvature, thus complying with the complex geometry in a concentric manner until reaching the large glass dome at the top. The annular beams are supported by pairs of pillars arranged in a V shape with a circular section and made of laminated wood. This innovative solution accentuates the lightness of the wooden roof.

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Added By

maquid

Edited By

Michelle Cassidy

  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

November 27, 2023

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Sources
  • https://italiawiki.com/pages/area-di-sosta-italiana/area-di-servizio-villoresi-est.html
  • https://www.autogrill.it/locale/villoresi-est/
  • https://www.rubner.com/it/riferimenti/costruzioni-legno/area-di-servizio-villoresi-est/
Area di Servizio Villoresi Est
A8 Milano, km 9
Lainate, 20020
Italy
45.559339, 9.041626
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Nearby Places

Ninfeo di Villa Litta

Lainate, Italy

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Cimitero di Guerra di Milano (Milan War Cemetery)

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Lainate

Lainate

Italy

Places 2

Nearby Places

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