Gdańsk Główny railway station

The first railway line in Gdańsk opened in 1852.[1] Around 1867, in the area of today's main railway station (Główny) a small, temporary passenger terminal Danzig Hohes Tor (Gdańsk Brama Wyżynna) was built. Access to it was only from the west, from the so-called. "Promenade" (ul. 3 Maja). To the east of the station the city separated because of the modern fortifications and moat of Gdańsk. The station could begin to expand after filling up the old moat and demolishing the western bastions.

The existing station was built between 1894 and 1900, with the official opening on 30 October 1900.

In 1945 the station was set on fire and was restored after World War II. The tower escaped the fire.

On 2 January 1952 the SKM Trojmiasto suburban railway was opened, parallel to the existing line between Gdańsk and Gdynia.[2]

The station features five island platforms, of which three function for the regional commuter SKM services and the other two for long-distance services and regional services. Access to the platforms is via subways from the east and west sides of the city. On the east side, the subway ends on the other side of Podwale Grodzkie street, and on the west side, it goes directly into the PKS (long-distance bus) station. Connecting tunnels enable access to the station building and tram stops, and contain shops, fast food bars, newsagents, and other kiosks.

Gdańsk Główny Aerial view

The station building hails from the end of the 19th century.

Nowadays there is a small shopping centre on the patio, and a McDonald's and KFC inside the terminal. Ticket offices are open all day, and the station sells international as well as domestic tickets.

Prior to World War II, Gdańsk Główny was named Danzig Hauptbahnhof (German for "Danzig Main station"; some sources translate Hauptbahnhof as central station). At the end of the World War II, Soviet forces razed the station building almost completely (with the rest of the city), and the entire structure was rebuilt after the war.

The station shares its design with Colmar station in Alsace, France, which was part of Germany at the time as well. Thus the buildings are 'twins' of one another.

In the early 1990s, during the general overhaul of the train station, a two-level hall was built for shops. This did not prove popular and was demolished in 2013.

Modernisation work is set to take place in early 2017. The work will remove changes made to the northern part of the building, replace windows and doors, update the passenger information system, security systems, introduce escalators, renewed lifts and an extension of the tunnel located to the east of the station. The estimated cost of the reconstruction will amount to about 50 million zł, and will take about 18 months.

In terms of the reconstruction of the railway infrastructure, PKP PLK plans to overhaul long-distance platforms 1 and 2 and the tunnels, replace lighting (preserving their historical shapes) and installation of passenger information systems, elevators and escalators.

The station is served by the following services:

• EuroCity services (EC) Gdynia - Gdansk - Bydgoszcz - Poznan - Rzepin - Frankfurt (Oder) - Berlin
• EuroCity services (EC) Gdynia - Gdansk - Malbork - Warsaw - Katowice - Bohumin - Ostrava - Prerov - Breclav - Vienna
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Malbork - Warsaw - Krakow - Rzeszow
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Malbork - Warsaw - Katowice - Bielsko-Biala
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Bydgoszcz - Torun - Kutno - Lowicz - Warsaw - Lublin - Rzeszow - Zagorz / Przemysl
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Bydgoszcz - Torun - Kutno - Lodz - Czestochowa - Katowice - Bielsko-Biala
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Bydgoszcz - Torun - Kutno - Lodz - Czestochowa - Krakow - Zakopane
• Intercity services Gdynia - Gdansk - Bydgoszcz - Poznan - Wroclaw / Zielona Gora
• Intercity services Szczecin - Stargard - Bialogard - Koszalin - Slupsk - Lebork - Gdynia - Gdansk - Malbork - Elblag - Olsztyn - Elk - Bialystok
• Regional services (R) Gdynia - Sopot - Gdansk - Tczew - Malbork - Elblag - Ilawa - Olsztyn
• Regional services (R) Gdynia - Sopot - Gdansk - Tczew - Laskowice - Bydgoszcz
• Pomorska Kolej Metropolitalna services (PKM) Kartuzy - Zukowo - Gdansk Airport - Gdansk
• Szybka Kolej Miejska services (SKM) Wejherowo - Reda - Rumia - Gdynia - Sopot - Gdansk

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  Platform and back of the main building
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  Train stop
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  Main entrance
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  Rail
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  Platform 3
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  New Pendolino arriving to Gdańsk

Media related to Gdańsk Główny at Wikimedia Commons

• This article is based upon a translation of the Polish language version as of October 2016.