Supriya Ghosh (Editor)

Pretoria railway station

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Owned by
  
PRASA

Structure type
  
At-grade

Opened
  
1892

Rebuilt
  
1910

Connections
  
Gautrain

Electrified
  
yes

Phone
  
+27 12 315 2566

Pretoria railway station

Location
  
Scheiding Street, Pretoria

Line(s)
  
Shosholoza Meyl:   Johannesburg–Nelspruit–Komatipoort   Johannesburg–Polokwane–Musina Premier Classe:   Johannesburg–Hoedspruit Metrorail: Johannesburg–Pretoria Pretoria–De Wildt/Mabopane Pretoria–Pienaarspoort Pretoria–Saulsville Tshwane Business Express

Address
  
Scheiding St, Pretoria, 2001, South Africa

Owner
  
Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa

Similar
  
Hatfield, Johannesburg Park Station, Centurion, Rhodesfield, Church Square - Pretoria

Pretoria railway station is the central station in Pretoria, the executive capital of South Africa. It is located between Pretoria's central business district and Salvokop, in a 1910 building designed by Herbert Baker. It is the terminus of various Metrorail commuter rail services in the northern part of Gauteng, and a stop on Shosholoza Meyl inter-city services from Johannesburg to Polokwane and Nelspruit. Pretoria is also the northern terminus of the luxury Blue Train service from Cape Town. Platforms and tracks for the Gautrain rapid-rail service are adjacent to the main-line station.

Contents

History

The first railway station in Pretoria was built in 1892 by the Netherlands-South African Railway Company (NZASM) as the western terminus of its line to the harbour of Delagoa Bay (now Maputo). In 1910, shortly before the creation of the Union of South Africa, the government of the Transvaal Colony decided to spend excess funds on constructing a new station for Pretoria, rather than surrendering the money to the new national government. The new station was the first public building designed by Sir Herbert Baker.

On 19 February 2001, a signalling failure led to major delays to Metrorail services in Pretoria. Angered by the delays, some commuters set a fire in a waiting room which spread to the roof of the building, which caved in. Almost all of the roof was destroyed, although the structure itself was saved. The restoration, which cost 18 million rand, started in June 2001 and finished in February 2002.

Services

Shosholoza Meyl inter-city services originating from Johannesburg pass through Pretoria en route to Musina via Polokwane and Komatipoort via Nelspruit. Metrorail commuter services operate from Pretoria west to Atteridgeville, north to Soshanguve and Ga-Rankuwa, east to Mamelodi, and south to Johannesburg Park Station. The Gautrain connects Pretoria station to Park Station, with another going east in Pretoria to Hatfield.

References

Pretoria railway station Wikipedia