Orestiada railway station

Ορεστιάδα Orestiáda
Orestiada railway station buildings, July 2017
Location	Orestiada 682 00 Evros Greece
Coordinates	41°30′11″N 26°32′14″E / 41.5030°N 26.5372°E / 41.5030; 26.5372Coordinates: 41°30′11″N 26°32′14″E / 41.5030°N 26.5372°E / 41.5030; 26.5372
Owned by	OSE
Line(s)	Regional Alexandroupoli–Svilengrad railway
Platforms	3
Tracks	4
Train operators	TrainOSE
Construction
Structure type	at-grade
Platform levels	1
Disabled access
Other information
Status	Unstaffed
Website	http://www.ose.gr/en/
History
Opened	16 September 1996
Electrified	No
Services
Preceding station   TrainOSE   Following station Xeimonio toward Alexandroupoli Regional toward Ormenio
Location
Orestiada Location within Greece

Orestiada railway station (Greek: Σιδηροδρομικός Σταθμός Ορεστιάδας, romanized: Sidirodromikos Stathmos Orestiádas), is a railway station that serves the town of Orestiada, in Evros, in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Greece. Located 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) from the center of Orestiada, on the eastern edge of the town.^[1] The station was open by OSE in 1996, at a cost of €4.5 million. Today TrainOSE operates just 4 daily Regional trains^[2] to Alexandroupoli. The station is unstaffed^[3] however there are waiting rooms available.

History[]

The station was built the mid-1990s, to replace an older station (built in 1928), and officially inaugurated on 16 September 1996.^[4] At the time, the line saw a large amount of commercial and passenger traffic and was the fourth busiest and third largest^[5] station in Northern Greece. In 2009, with the Greek debt crisis unfolding OSE's Management was forced to reduce services across the network. Timetables were cutback and routes closed, as the government-run entity attempted to reduce overheads. Services from Orestiada to Alexandroupoli were cut back to three trains a day, reducing the reliability of services, and passenger numbers. With passenger footfall in sharp decline, the station building was closed, and mothballed, less than 15 years after it first opened. On 11 February 2011, all cross border routes were closed and international services (to Istanbul, Sofia, etc.) were ended. Thus, only two routes now connect Orestiada with Thessaloniki and Athens (and those with a connection to Alex / Polis), while route time increased as the network was "upgraded".^[6] Services to/from Ormenio were replaced by bus. The route time increased and reached by 2014 up to 2 hours 20 mins for Alexandroupolis and 9 hours for Thessaloniki.

With usage down, the station suffered repeated attacks from vandalism, with the station clock and the Greek flag stolen, and the walls covered in graffiti. The canopies became shelters for immigrants entering from Turkey,^[7] the overpass filled syringes, even some broken windows and benches. However, the main building was left secured.^[8] In 2014, the station building was refurbished and reopened after being closed for 3 years.^[9]

Facilities[]

The station is (as of 2020) unstaffed, however the waiting rooms remain open. The entrance is equipped with wheelchair ramps and parking in the forecourt.

Services[]

As of 2020, the station is only served by two daily pairs of regional trains Alexandroupoli–Ormenio.^[10] The station is served by long distance KTEL bus’s.

References[]

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