Florina railway station (Greek: Σιδηροδρομικός σταθμός Φλωρίνης, romanized: Sidirodromikós stathmós Florínis) is a railway station in Florina, a town in Western Macedonia, Greece. It is situated at the Greek terminus of the Thessaloniki–Bitola railway. It was opened in 1929, with the station fully operational by 1931. It is served by local trains to Thessaloniki.[5]
Φλώρινα Florina | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 Florina railway station (9 August 2008) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Florina 531 00 Florina (regional unit) Greece | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 40°46′55″N 21°24′55″E / 40.782079°N 21.415380°E | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | GAIAOSE[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Thessaloniki–Bitola railway[2] Messonisi–Florina railway | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms | 2 (1 side platform, 1 island platform) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Train operators | Hellenic Train | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Structure type | at-grade | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Platform levels | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Accessible |      | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Staffed[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | http://www.ose.gr/en/ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1929[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrified | No | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Original company | Hellenic Railways Organisation | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||||||||||||
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History
editThe station opened in 1929, at the end of a short extension of track to connect Mesonisi (then known as Florina) just off the Thessaloniki–Bitola railway[2] In the early 1920s, effects were made to extend the line to Florina. The works involved the creation of a curve of track just of the existing station and a small section of single track. Work began in July 1924 and with Law 3274/1924 the construction of a branch line to the town of Florina. Construction took around three years due in part to delays and funding issues, which had grown to 10 million drachmas (double the original estimate).[6]
In 1929, the construction works of the line were completed, and the first trains arrived at the new temporary station in the city of Florina. The construction work on new permanent station buildings began immediately and was completed in 1931. On 15 May 1931, the station was inaugurated. The Municipal Council, at the meeting on 6-7-1931 (dec. no. 139), decides that "after the construction and operation of the new Florini Railway Station, as in the case of the old Florini Railway Station, the name Armenochorio Railway Station should be given to the new Florini Railway Station.[7] In 1931 'Old' Florina station was renamed Mesonisi.
In 1970 OSE became the legal successor to the SEK, taking over responsibilities for most of Greece's rail infrastructure. On 1 January 1971, the station and most of the Greek rail infrastructure was transferred to the Hellenic Railways Organisation S.A., a state-owned corporation. Freight traffic declined sharply when the state-imposed monopoly of OSE for the transport of agricultural products and fertilisers ended in the early 1990s. Many small stations of the network with little passenger traffic were closed down. In 2001 the infrastructure element of OSE was created, known as GAIAOSE; it would henceforth be responsible for the maintenance of stations, bridges and other elements of the network, as well as the leasing and the sale of railway assists.[8] In 2003, OSE launched "Proastiakos SA", as a subsidiary to serve the operation of the suburban network in the urban complex of Athens during the 2004 Olympic Games. In 2005, TrainOSE was created as a brand within OSE to concentrate on rail services and passenger interface.
In 2009, with the Greek debt crisis unfolding OSE's Management was forced to reduce services across the network. Timetables were cut back, and routes closed as the government-run entity attempted to reduce overheads. In 2008, all Proastiakos were transferred from OSE to TrainOSE. August 2013 Proastiakos services where exsteded to Florina. In 2017 OSE's passenger transport sector was privatised as TrainOSE, currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane[9] infrastructure, including stations, remained under the control of OSE. In July 2022, the station began being served by Hellenic Train, the rebranded TranOSE.[10]
Facilities
editThe station is staffed only in the early morning and later afternoon.[3] There are toilets and parking onsite. Local and regional buses stop in the forecourt.
Services
editThe station was served by three[11] local trains to Thessaloniki daily.[5][3]
Currently there is a rail-replacement bus between Florina and Edessa.[12]
Station layout
edit| L Ground/Concourse |
Customer service | Tickets/Exits |
| Level L1 |
Side platform, doors will open on the right | |
| Platform 1 | Π2  towards Thessaloniki (Vevi) ←
| |
| Platform 2 | Π2 towards Thessaloniki (Mesonisi) ←
| |
| Side platform, doors will open on the right | ||
References
edit- ^ "Home". gaiaose.com.
- ^ a b "OSE - 2017 Network Statement Annexes".
- ^ a b c https://florina.pdm.gov.gr/περιφερειακή-ενότητα-φλώρινας/συγκοινωνίες/δρομολόγια-τραινοσε/ [bare URL]
- ^ "Ποιος τρενάρει;" στον εγκαταλειμμένο τερματικό Σταθμό Τραίνου Φλώρινας (Μεσονήσι). neaflorina.gr (in Greek). Retrieved 2023-01-29.
- ^ a b "Visit Florina". Archived from the original on 2021-01-18. Retrieved 2018-12-03.
- ^ ""Ποιος τρενάρει;" στον εγκαταλειμμένο τερματικό Σταθμό Τραίνου Φλώρινας (Μεσονήσι)". Νέα Φλώρινα. Nea Florina. 25 June 2021. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
- ^ Αμυνταίου, Φλώρινας (2018). Οι σιδηροδρομικοί σταθμοί Φλώρινας- Αμυνταίου, Φλώρινα. Hellenic Railways Organisation (OSE).
- ^ "Home". gaiaose.com.
- ^ "It's a new day for TRAINOSE as FS acquires the entirety of the company's shares". ypodomes.com. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
- ^ Newsroom. "TrainOSE renamed Hellenic Train, eyes expansion | eKathimerini.com". ekathimerini.com. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help) - ^ "Florina Railway Station | railcc".
- ^ "Important information". hellenictrain. Retrieved 15 March 2024.