Praha-Žižkov freight railway station () is a railway station formerly used for

rail freight transport Rail freight transport is the use of railways and trains to transport cargo as opposed to human passengers. A freight train, cargo train, or goods train is a group of freight cars (US) or goods wagons (International Union of Railways) hauled b ...

, located in the

Žižkov Žižkov ( or ''Zizkow'', between 1939 and 1945 ''Veitsberg'') is a cadastral district of Prague, Czech Republic. Most of Žižkov lies in the municipal and administrative district of Prague 3, except for very small parts which are in Pra ...

district of

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It was originally opened in 1936 and ceased operations in 2002. The station building was confirmed as a cultural monument in March 2013.

Service

The station, which was built in an area previously known as ', went into service on 1 March 1936. The buildings were designed by Karel Caivas and Vladimír Weiss, whereas Miroslav Chlumecký designed the track infrastructure. The purpose of the station was to relieve Prague city centre of freight train services. It was also used for warehousing, although the creation of a food warehouse in the district of

Strašnice Strašnice is a cadastral district in Prague. It became part of Prague on 1 January 1922. It lies mostly in the municipal and administrative district of Prague 10 while a small part is in Prague 3. The district is bordered by Vršovic ...

in 1966 reduced the demand at the station. The station's formal service ceased in 2002. The access track with a rail branching is used for a container terminal which is adjacent to the freight station building and is in service up to now.

Usage beyond 2002

Following its closure in 2002, parts of the station were leased to local businesses for use as a

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the rural–urban fringe, out ...

. The station hosted the Prague Biennale art exhibition in June 2013. In October of the same year, the 15th edition of the annual ''

Designblok Designblok is a design festival held in Prague, Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany ...

'' festival was hosted there. Redevelopment plans were proposed in November 2019. As of 2021, the site is included in the database of contaminated sites in the Czech Republic and will require remediation prior to any reuse.

Cultural monument

The three-winged main station building was denoted as a national cultural monument in 2010 by the

Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to: * Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania) * Ministry of Culture (Algeria) * Ministry of Culture (Argentina) * Minister for the Arts (Australia) * Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)Ministry o ...

, a move which was quickly challenged by local government and members of the local

real estate development Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw Real Estate, land and the sale of developed land or parce ...

industry including the Sekyra Group. Developers had wanted to use the area to construct a new residential area to house 15,000 people. The building's status was however secured in March 2013, with its historical, technical and architectural value among the reasons cited for its confirmed status. In December 2024 the city of Prague announced it will purchase the station and the area around it. The city plans to transform and develop it into a school, housing, cultural center, offices, and commercial spaces.

Local transport

The station is served by Prague's tram network with a stop bearing the station's name.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zizkov Railway stations in Prague Railway stations in the Czech Republic opened in 1936 Cultural heritage of the Czech Republic Žižkov 1936 establishments in Czechoslovakia 2002 disestablishments in the Czech Republic Railway stations in the Czech Republic closed in the 21st century