Moscow plans to link two of its main rail terminals under a vast glass canopy. Preservationists fear Yaroslavsky Station’s Soviet architecture could disappear in the process.

Reconstruction of Moscow’s Yaroslavsky Station will begin in December 2026. A wave-shaped glass canopy will connect it to neighboring Leningradsky Station, allowing passengers to transfer between the two without going outdoors. Work will continue until 2028. The station’s appearance has changed many times over the years: the building designed by Fyodor Schechtel that Muscovites know today came much later. Architecture journalist Asya Zolnikova traces the station’s history and explains why preservation advocates are concerned about the upcoming reconstruction.