Bangkok railway station

Bangkok railway station
สถานีรถไฟกรุงเทพ
Location Rama IV Rd, Pathum Wan, Bangkok, 10330
Coordinates 13°44′20″N 100°31′0″E / 13.73889°N 100.51667°E / 13.73889; 100.51667Coordinates: 13°44′20″N 100°31′0″E / 13.73889°N 100.51667°E / 13.73889; 100.51667
Owned by State Railway of Thailand
Line(s) Northern Line
Northeastern Line
Eastern Line
Southern Line
Platforms 14
Connections MRT, BMTA
Construction
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Station code กท.
History
Opened 25 June 1916
Traffic
Passengers (22,000,000) 60,000+ per day
Services
Preceding station   State Railway of Thailand   Following station
TerminusNorthern Line
toward Chiang Mai
Northeastern Line
Northeastern Line
toward Thanaleng
Southern Line
Eastern Line
Urupong Halt
Eastern Line
Urupong Halt

Bangkok railway station (Thai: สถานีรถไฟกรุงเทพ), unofficially known as Hua Lamphong station (Thai: สถานีหัวลำโพง), is the main railway station in Bangkok, Thailand. It is in the center of the city in the Pathum Wan District, and is operated by the State Railway of Thailand (SRT).

Naming

The station is officially referred to by the State Railway of Thailand as Sathani Rotfai Krung Thep in Thai (Krung Thep is the transliteration of the common Thai language name of Bangkok) and Bangkok Station in English.[1] Hua Lamphong (Thai: หัวลำโพง) is the informal name of the station, used by both foreign travellers and locals. The station is often named as Hua Lamphong in travel guide books and in the public press.[2]

In other areas of Thailand the station is commonly referred to as Krungthep Station, and the name Hua Lamphong is not well-known.

In all documents published by the State Railway of Thailand (such as train tickets, timetables, and tour pamphlets) the station is uniformly transcribed as Krungthep (กรุงเทพฯ) in Thai.[1]

History

The station was opened on 25 June 1916 after six years of construction. The site of the railway station was previously occupied by the national railway's maintenance centre, which moved to Makkasan in June 1910. At the nearby site of the previous railway station a pillar commemorates the inauguration of the Thai railway network in 1897.

The station was built in an Italian Neo-Renaissance-style, with decorated wooden roofs and stained glass windows. The architecture is attributed to Turin-born Mario Tamagno, who with countryman Annibale Rigotti (1870–1968) was also responsible for the design of several other early 20th century public buildings in Bangkok. The pair designed Bang Khun Phrom Palace (1906), Ananta Samakhom Throne Hall in the Royal Plaza (1907–15) and Suan Kularb Residential Hall and Throne Hall in Dusit Garden, among other buildings.

There are 14 platforms, 26 ticket booths, and two electric display boards. Hua Lamphong serves over 130 trains and approximately 60,000 passengers each day. Since 2004 the station has been connected by an underground passage to the MRT (Metropolitan Rapid Transit) subway system's Hua Lamphong MRT Station.

The station is also a terminus of the Eastern and Oriental Express luxury trains.[3]

Closure

The station is scheduled to be closed in 2019, when it will be converted into a museum. The State Railway of Thailand plans to move Bangkok's central station to Bang Sue Central Station.[4][5]

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Northeastern Line Timetable" (PDF). State Railway of Thailand. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 September 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  2. ↑ "Bangkok Hualamphong Station".
  3. ↑ Perkins, Ed (2013-08-01). "10 iconic train excursions". USA Today. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  4. ↑ Charoenkiatpakul, Wichan (8 May 2017). "Hua Lamphong enters its last 2 years". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 25 December 2017.
  5. ↑ Clark, James (3 November 2016). "These rail projects will transform travel in Southeast Asia". Asia Times. Retrieved 2016-11-26.

See also

References

  • รายงานกองบัญชาการครั้งที่ 20 กล่าวด้วยการเดินรถไฟหลวงทางขนาดใหญ่ในกรุงสยามประจำพระพุทธศักราช 2459 (ปิคฤศต์ศักราช 1916-17), กรมรถไฟหลวง, โรงพิมพ์กรมรถไฟ, 2460 (Stored in National Archives of Thailand)
  • งานฉลอง 50ปี กรมรถไฟหลวง, กรมรถไฟหลวง, โรงพิมพ์กรมรถไฟ, 2490
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