An \u201cexpress\u201d library has opened in a new metro station in Warsaw, aiming to provide an appealing cultural space to encourage residents and commuters to forgo smartphones in favour of books and, thanks to fresh herbs growing in a vertical garden, a dash of subterranean greenery too.<\/p>\n
The stylish Metroteka<\/a>, which opened this week in the Kondratowicza M2 line metro station in the Polish capital\u2019s Targ\u00f3wek district, offers two reading areas for adults and children, as well as a space for public readings and events.<\/p>\n About 16,000 books are on offer in the 150 sq metre and can be borrowed through an \u201cexpress\u201d checkout machine using contactless chips. Readers can return them on site or through a street-level parcel locker for books, available 24\/7.<\/p>\n Inside of the Metroteka public library inside Kondratowicza metro station in Warsaw, Poland. Photograph: Biblioteka Publiczna w Dzielnicy Targ\u00f3wek m.st. Warszawy<\/p>\n Visitors can study or work in a communal area, borrow a laptop to browse the internet, or simply sit down with a complimentary coffee or hot chocolate to unwind after rush hour travel on the metro.<\/p>\n Its hydroponic<\/a> garden wall which operates without natural sunlight or soil to grow fresh herbs like basil and oregano, and flowers including nasturtiums and pansies.<\/p>\n \u201cOur dream is for Metroteka to become an educational and cultural centre, and not just a place where you borrow your books from,\u201d says the deputy director of Targ\u00f3wek library, Gra\u017cyna Strzelczak-Batkowska. The wall, for example, will be used for debates on food security, sustainability and \u201chow to save the world\u201d in the face of climate change, she says.<\/p>\n She says the unique subterranean location brings the library closer to busy commuters, \u201cboth geographically and in terms of time you need to spend on getting the book\u201d. \u201cI always joke that books are not made of glass \u2013 you can just pop in, grab a few, throw them on a self-checkout machine, and that\u2019s it, you\u2019re out on a new adventure,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n The hydroponic garden wall. Photograph: Biblioteka Publiczna w Dzielnicy Targ\u00f3wek m.st. Warszawy<\/p>\n More than 400 books were leased on the first day, mostly recommended school readings, as well as travel guides and \u201call sorts of how-to books.\u201d<\/p>\n The library\u2019s innovative model aims to encourage Poles to read more. The annual survey by the National Library of Poland found that only 41% of respondents had read at least one book in 2024<\/a>, down from the high 50s in the late 1990s and early 2000s, as people turn to TV, streaming services, and phones for entertainment instead.<\/p>\n These numbers are higher than in southern Europe<\/a>, but lower than in the Nordic countries, or even the neighbouring Czech Republic, the National Library\u2019s director, Tomasz Makowski, says.<\/p>\n