Bucharest North railway station

train station in Bucharest, Romania

Bucharest North railway station is the main railway station in Bucharest and the largest railway station in Romania. The vast majority of mainline trains to and from Bucharest start there.

Gara București Nord
Căile Ferate Române
View of "The Columns", the station's second building from 1938, which features most of the taxi ranks
General information
LocationPiața Gării de Nord, Bucharest, Romania
Coordinates44°26′46.92″N 26°4′27.15″E / 44.4463667°N 26.0742083°E / 44.4463667; 26.0742083
Owned byCFR
Line(s)Bucharest–Constanța
Bucharest–Craiova
Bucharest–Giurgiu
Bucharest–Pitești
Bucharest–Ploiești
Bucharest–Urziceni
M1 Line (Bucharest Metro)
M4 Line (Bucharest Metro)
Platforms8
Tracks14
Construction
Structure typeterminal station
Parkingyes
History
Opened13 September 1872
Electrified16 February 1969

History

change

The original North railway station was built between 1868—1872. The foundation stone was placed on 10 September 1868 in the presence of King Carol I of Romania. The building was designed as a U-shaped structure. The first railways between RomanGalațiBucharestPitești started on 13 September 1872. Between 1895—1896 a new wing of the station was built, which included a "Royal Hall", in anticipation of the visit of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary.[1]

 
Non-stop information and coordination point in Bucharest North Railway Station designed to provide aid to arriving Ukrainian refugees during Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022

The station and its surroundings were heavily bombed by the Allies in April 1944 during a campaign aimed at Axis supply lines. During the Communist era the station was electrified

During the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, from 27 February 2022 onwards, the station served as a coordination point for Ukrainian refugees. On the first day, almost 100 Ukrainian refugees arrived on five trains owned by Romanian state operator CFR Călători; the trains came from Iași and Suceava, in northeast Romania.[2] At midnight on 4 March 2022, approximately 1,000 refugees arrived from Iași and were later accommodated at Romexpo.[3]

Current status

change

There are 14 tracks and 8 platforms.

References

change
  1. Alexandru Popescu. "Străzile Bucureștilor – mică istorie sentimentală în imagini (XLVI). Bulevardul Dinicu Golescu – Gara de Nord". Ziarul Financiar.
  2. Oancea, Dorin (27 February 2022). "Circa 100 de refugiați din Ucraina ajung astăzi în Gara de Nord din București" (in Romanian). Mediafax.
  3. Costea, Alexandra (4 March 2022). "Aproximativ 1.000 de refugiați ucraineni vor ajunge cu trenul la București" (in Romanian). Kanal D.