N. Kósa Judit - Szablyár Péter: Underground Pest - Our Budapest (Budapest, 2002)

The catacombs of the 21st century - underground car-parks

whale, possibly with its skeleton and together with several dolphins, because the latter would not be very expensive and yet they are very curious, rare animals.’’ The plan, however, did not materialise.

Renewal of the Zoo, underway to this day, could not leave the rocks untouched. Damage sustained during World War II, carelessly executed repairs, and the overall deterioration of the concrete structure demanded comprehensive reconstruction.

When the Smaller Rock had been reinforced, the surrounding runways, pens and paddocks (used for polar bear, seal and penguin shows as well as the snow owl aviary) were modernised, and the timber construction known as the Norwegian House was completely overhauled, too. However, it was the interior of the rock that experienced the greatest alteration. What was once the Cave Cinema is now a conference-cum-exhibition hall with a seating capacity of 250, and a 150-seat restaurant whose pleasant ambience evokes a deep sea atmosphere. A smaller chamber was fitted into the spaces left unused earlier.

Simultaneously with the reconstruction of the pens around the Greater Rock, the Dairy Hall originally built by Károly Kós will also be restored. Inside the large interior spaces there will be an educational exhibition centre and a labyrinth with a path following the evolution of life.

The catacombs of the 21st century - underground car-parks

There is a universal tendency in 20th century metropolises, especially in their overcrowded inner city areas, to try to "hide" as many cars as possible underground.

The rush of multi-storey and underground car park construction foreseen by experts in the 1990s did not occur, possibly due to the very slow rates of return caused by exorbitant real estate prices. Updated construction regulations required contractors to build car parks beneath hotels, office and apartment blocks, but these spaces are usually reserved for those living or working in the buildings above.

With over one million cars crowding into Budapest in the rush hour (560,000 belonging to local residents, 300,000 to commuters and another 300,000 to tourists in the high season), rendering the streets all but impassable, the introduction of pay zones has done no more than rearrange the distribution of the cars pushing into the city to sit idling there for hours.

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