Warszawa Centralna railway station

Coordinates: 52°13′43″N 21°00′11″E / 52.228611°N 21.003056°E / 52.228611; 21.003056
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Warszawa Centralna
Warsaw Central
Railway Station
Location of station in Warsaw
General information
LocationAl. Jerozolimskie 54, Warsaw, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland
Coordinates52°13′43″N 21°00′11″E / 52.228611°N 21.003056°E / 52.228611; 21.003056
Platforms4
Tracks8
Connections Warszawa Śródmieście
Centrum
Warszawa Śródmieście WKD
History
Opened1975

Warszawa Centralna (official Polish name since 2019 Dworzec Centralny im. Stanisława Moniuszki), in English known as Warsaw Central Station, is the primary railway station in Warsaw, Poland. Completed in 1975, the station is located on the Warsaw Cross-City Line and features four underground island platforms with eight tracks in total. It is served by the long-distance domestic and international trains of PKP Intercity and Polregio as well as some of the regional trains operated by Koleje Mazowieckie. Adjacent to the north side of the building is a bus station that serves as the central hub for night bus lines, and Złote Tarasy shopping center.

Granite plaque with the name of the station, Stanisław Moniuszko, attached after the renovation of 2010-12

History[edit]

Warszawa Centralna in 1975. Swiss monthly magazine Hochparterre rated it as "Excellent public space: the main hall of the Warszawa Centralna railway station in its original shape."[1] Railway station was registered as a historical monument of modern architecture by the provincial conservator of monuments (2019).
Main hall. The futuristic mezzanine was added between 2015 and 2016.

Warsaw Central was constructed as a flagship project of the Polish People's Republic during the 1970s economic boom, and was intended to replace the inadequate and obsolete Warszawa Główna railway station.

However, the project encountered substantial problems from the very beginning. The station's design was innovative, but construction was plagued by continuous alterations to the scope of work which in turn hurt functionality and operations upon completion. These problems were partially a result of a hasty completion schedule, with the opening date set to coincide with Leonid Brezhnev's 1975 visit[2] to Warsaw. The design and construction problems necessitated immediate repairs that would continue through the 1980s. Despite the deficiencies, the structure was fairly advanced for its time and incorporated such features as automatic doors, as well as escalators and elevators for each platform. Moreover, each platform was equipped with WC, public telephones and glazed waiting rooms.[3][4]

The station was one of only a handful of public buildings in Warsaw which suffered a technical fault as a result of the millennium bug. The indicator board was switched off for approximately 24 hours on 1 January 2000 while its timing chip was replaced. In the meantime, all departures were announced over the Tannoy system. The normal practice is for only international departures to be announced in this way. The story was originally reported in Gazeta Wyborcza on 4 January 2000.

After a period of decline, a cosmetic upgrade of the station in 2010-2011 was completed in time for the Euro 2012 championships.[5] Between 2015 and 2016, a mezzanine connecting the waiting room in the west wing to the restaurants in the east wing was constructed. It has been both praised for improving the utilization of space in the main hall and criticized for its futuristic design, which clashes with the building's modernist architecture.[6] The Warsaw city government is contemplating demolishing and replacing the station, either at the same location or farther from the city center.[7] Some elements of the Warsaw press (e.g. Gazeta Wyborcza and Architektura Murator, 2012), as well as Swiss architect and journalist Werner Huber, have argued against demolition, claiming that the current Warszawa Centralna is a great example and a masterpiece of modernism in Poland.[8]

The station is fully accessible to the disabled as well as passengers with heavy luggage.[4]

Warsaw Central Station on map of the city's rail network

In January 2019, the name of the Polish composer Stanisław Moniuszko was appended to Warszawa Centralna station, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of his birth.[9]

Location[edit]

Warszawa Centralna is connected by an underground passage to two other rail stations: to the west lies Warszawa Śródmieście WKD railway station, the terminus of the WKD suburban light rail line, and to the east lies Warszawa Śródmieście PKP, served by suburban trains run by Koleje Mazowieckie and Szybka Kolej Miejska.[10] From the station one can also easily access Złote Tarasy shopping centre, Centrum LIM, the Palace of Culture and Science and Varso Tower.

International train services[edit]

Train number Train name Destination Operated by
EN 9S/10S Polonez
(Suspended)
Poland Warsaw Zachodnia
Russia Moscow (Belorussky)
Poland PKP
Russia Russian Railways
EC 40/41

EC 44/45

EC 48/49

Berlin-Warszawa-Express Germany Berlin (HBF)
Poland Warsaw Wschodnia
Germany Deutsche Bahn
Poland PKP
067/068 Kyiv Express Poland Warsaw Zachodnia
Ukraine Kyiv
Ukraine Ukrainian Railways
EC 102/103 Polonia Austria Vienna (HBF)
Poland Warsaw Wschodnia
Poland PKP
EC 106/107 Sobieski Austria Vienna (HBF)
Poland Gdynia
Poland PKP
IC 110/111 Silesia Czech Republic Ostrava (Svinov)
Poland Warsaw Wschodnia
Poland PKP
EC 112/113

EC 116/117

Silesia Czech Republic Prague (Hlavní)
Poland Warsaw Wschodnia
Czech Republic České dráhy
Poland PKP
IC 125/126 Mickiewicz
(Services to Belarus suspended,
Terminates in Terespol)
Poland Warsaw Zachodnia
Belarus Brest
Poland PKP
IC 127/128 Skaryna
(Services to Belarus suspended,
Terminates in Terespol)
Poland Warsaw Zachodnia
Belarus Brest
Poland PKP
EC 130/131 Báthory
(Services to Belarus suspended,
Terminates in Terespol)
Hungary Budapest (Nyugati)
Belarus Brest
Hungary Hungarian State Railways
Poland PKP
IC 143/144 Hańcza Poland Kraków (Główny)
Lithuania Mockava
Poland PKP
EC 246/247

IC 248/249

Berlin-Warszawa-Express Germany Berlin (HBF)
Poland Warsaw Wschodnia
Germany Deutsche Bahn
Poland PKP
EN 404/405 Vltava
(Suspended)
Czech Republic Prague (Hlavní)
Russia Moscow (Belorussky)
Russia Russian Railways
EN 408/409 (Suspended) France Nice (Ville)
Russia Moscow (Belorussky)
Poland PKP
Russia Russian Railways
EN 440/441 Strizh
(Suspended)
Germany Berlin (HBF)
Russia Moscow (Belorussky)
Russia Russian Railways
EN 452/453 (Suspended) France Paris (Gare de l'Est)
Russia Moscow (Belorussky)
Poland PKP
Russia Russian Railways
TLK 13102/13103 (Services to Belarus suspended) Poland Kraków (Główny)
Poland Suwałki (cars: Belarus Grodno)
Poland PKP

Domestic Train services[edit]

The station is served by the following service(s):

  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Gdynia - Warsaw
  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Warsaw - Wrocław
  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Warsaw - Katowice - Bielsko-Biała
  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Gdynia - Warsaw - Katowice - Gliwice/Bielsko-Biała
  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Warsaw - Kraków
  • Express Intercity Premium services (EIP) Gdynia/Kołobrzeg - Warsaw - Kraków (- Rzeszów)
  • Express Intercity services (EIC) SzczecinWarsaw [11]
  • Express Intercity services (EIC) Warsaw - Wrocław [12]
  • Express Intercity services (EIC) Warsaw - Kraków - Zakopane [13]
  • Intercity services (IC) Wrocław- Opole - Częstochowa - Warszawa[14][15]
  • Intercity services (IC) Wrocław - Ostrów Wielkopolski - Łódź - Warszawa[16]
  • Intercity services (IC) Białystok - Warszawa - Częstochowa - Opole - Wrocław[17]
  • Intercity services (IC) Białystok - Warszawa - Łódź - Ostrów Wielkopolski - Wrocław[18]
  • Intercity services (IC) Ełk - Białystok - Warszawa - Łódź - Ostrów Wielkopolski - Wrocław[19]
  • Intercity services (IC) Olsztyn - Warszawa - Skierniewice - Częstochowa - Katowice - Gliwice - Racibórz[20]
  • Intercity services (IC) Olsztyn - Warszawa - Skierniewice - Łódź[21]
  • Intercity services (IC) Olsztyn - Warszawa - Skierniewice - Częstochowa - Katowice - Bielsko-Biała[22]
  • Intercity services (IC) Olsztyn - Warszawa - Skierniewice - Częstochowa - Katowice - Gliwice - Racibórz[20]
  • Intercity services (TLK) Warszawa - Częstochowa - Lubliniec - Opole - Wrocław - Szklarska Poręba Górna[23]
  • Intercity services (TLK) Warszawa - Częstochowa - Katowice - Opole - Wrocław - Szklarska Poręba Górna[24]
  • Intercity services (TLK) Gdynia Główna — Zakopane [25][26]
  • Regional services (ŁKA) Łódz - Warsaw
Preceding station PKP Intercity Following station
Warszawa Zachodnia
towards Berlin Hbf
EuroCity
EC 95
 EIC 
Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Wschodnia EIP Terminus
Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Wschodnia Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Wschodnia Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia EIC Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia
towards Zakopane
Warszawa Wschodnia
towards Białystok or Ełk
IC Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Wschodnia
towards Białystok
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia Warszawa Wschodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia TLK Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Warszawa Wschodnia Warszawa Zachodnia
towards Zakopane
Preceding station KM Following station
Warszawa Zachodnia
towards Skierniewice
RE1 Warszawa Wschodnia
Warszawa Zachodnia
Terminus
RE9 Warszawa Wschodnia
towards Działdowo
Warszawa Zachodnia RL Warszawa Wschodnia
towards Modlin
Preceding station ŁKA Following station
Warszawa Zachodnia Łódź - Warsaw Warszawa Wschodnia
Terminus
Preceding station SKM Following station
Warszawa Zachodnia
towards Pruszków
S1 Warszawa Wschodnia
towards Otwock

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Werner Huber „Die Stadt und ihr Herz” Hochparterre: Zeitschrift für Architektur und Design 28/2015.
  2. ^ "How political revolutions shaped Warsaw's postwar architecture". Financial Times. 6 February 2015. Archived from the original on 2022-12-11.
  3. ^ A.Romanowicz "Warszawski Dworzec Centralny" DOKP Warszawa 1975
  4. ^ a b "Warsaw Central". Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  5. ^ Ryszard Piech (17 November 2008). "Euro 2012 deadline catalyses network upgrade". Railway Gazette International.
  6. ^ "Antresola na Dworcu Centralnym już otwarta. Co o niej sądzicie? [ZDJĘCIA i WIDEO]" (in Polish). 23 March 2016. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
  7. ^ Gazeta Wyborcza article: Dworzec Centralny. Burzyć czy zachować? [1]
  8. ^ "How political revolutions shaped Warsaw's postwar architecture". FT Now. 6 February 2015. Archived from the original on 2022-12-11. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  9. ^ https://www.rdc.pl/public/aktualnosci/dworzec-centralny-bedzie-nosil-imie-stanislawa-moniuszki_OyXumGbQpOTg1RohKFbD
  10. ^ "Photo of location". fotopolska.eu. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
  11. ^ PKP EIC Szczecin Główny — Warszawa Wschodnia Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/EIC/8100-CHROBRY/09-02-2023
  12. ^ PKP EIC Warszawa Wschodnia — Wrocław Główny Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/EIC/1600-PANORAMA
  13. ^ PKP EIC Warsaw - Kraków - Zakopane Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/EIC/1350-TATRY
  14. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 6128 OLEŃKA Wrocław Główny — Warszawa Gdańska. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/6128-OLE%C5%83KA/
  15. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 6124 FREDRO Wrocław Główny — Warszawa Wschodnia. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/6124-FREDRO/
  16. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 6122 BACZYŃSKI Wrocław Główny — Warszawa Wschodnia https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/6122-BACZY%C5%83SKI/
  17. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 16104 NAŁKOWSKA Białystok — Wrocław Główny. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/16104-NA%C5%81KOWSKA/
  18. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 16102 DĄBROWSKA Białystok — Wrocław Główny. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/16102-D%C4%84BROWSKA/
  19. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 6520 SŁOWACKI Białystok — Wrocław Główny. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/6520-S%C5%81OWACKI/
  20. ^ a b Koleo. PKP IC 5422 SKARBEK Olsztyn Główny — Racibórz. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/5422-SKARBEK/
  21. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 5122 MAZURY Olsztyn Główny — Łódź Fabryczna. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/5122-MAZURY/
  22. ^ Koleo. PKP IC 5424 KORMORAN Olsztyn Główny — Bielsko-Biała Główna. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/pociag/IC/5424-KORMORAN/27-01-2023
  23. ^ Koleo. TLK 61100 ORZESZKOWA. Szklarska Poręba Górna — Warszawa Gdańska. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/TLK/61100-ORZESZKOWA
  24. ^ Koleo. TLK 61190 KARKONOSZE. Szklarska Poręba Górna — Warszawa Gdańska. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/TLK/61190-KARKONOSZE
  25. ^ Koleo. PKP TLK 53170 KARPATY Gdynia Główna — Zakopane. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/TLK/53170-KARPATY
  26. ^ Koleo. PKP TLK 53104 MAŁOPOLSKA Gdynia Główna — Zakopane. Timetable. https://koleo.pl/en/pociag/TLK/53104-MA%C5%81OPOLSKA

External links[edit]