During summer 2004, it was announced that plans were prepared for a major upgrade of the station; a major goal of the renovations and redevelop work was to properly establish Roma Tiburtina as a capable transport hub for the expanding Italian high speed rail services. At this point, work was scheduled to commence in 2007 and the project was expected to have a total cost of €155 million. The project was only one element of the wider Trans-European Transport Network initiative conducted by the European Union. The redeveloped station was designed by architect Paolo Desideri, while the responsibility for managing both the design and construction phases resided with the Gemmo Railway Division, which also administered electrical and mechanical systems as well as the project's technical and financial aspects. During December 2007, demolition of the old station building commenced.