Plzeň hlavní nádraží (abbreviated ''Plzeň hl.n.''; ) is the

central station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...

Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...

in the

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 ...

. The station is located in the Slovany district near the city centre. The station was opened in 1862, together with the Czech Western Railway from

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 ...

to Plzeň. The station has six platforms for train transport and one platform for buses. There are also tram and trolleybus stops. The station is electrified. As of 8 March 2023, the station is undergoing major reconstruction.

History

The current building of the Plzeň main railway station was opened in 1907. It is an

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

building designed by Rudolf Štech. Rudolf Štech also co-financed construction of the railway building and due to debt, he committed suicide in 1908. On 17 April 1945, the building was heavily damaged during the bombing of Plzeň by the

US Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

. The bombing killed 347 people inside the station building. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the building was reconstructed to its original state. In the 1950s the building was renamed as ''Plzeň Gottwaldovo nádraží'' (English: "Plzeň Gottwald's station") in honour of the first Czechoslovak communist president

Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...

. In the 1960s, the station was electrified as part of line electrification to

České Budějovice České Budějovice (; ) is a city in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 97,000 inhabitants. The city is located in the valley of the Vltava River, at its confluence with the Malše. České Budějovice is the largest ...

. After the

Velvet Revolution The Velvet Revolution () or Gentle Revolution () was a non-violent transition of power in what was then Czechoslovakia, occurring from 17 November to 28 November 1989. Popular demonstrations against the one-party government of the Communist Pa ...

the station regained its original name. Since 2000 the building has been protected as a Czech

cultural monument A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage registe ...

. In 2012, the interiors of the station building were partially reconstructed. In 2013 the first

underpass A subway, also known as an underpass, is a grade-separated pedestrian crossing running underneath a road or railway in order to entirely separate pedestrians and cyclists from motor or train traffic. Terminology In the United States, as ...

for pedestrians was extended to connect Železniční street and Šumavská street with the station building. In the years 2016–2018, the platforms were reconstructed to height of . In December 2018, a

bus terminal A bus station, bus depot, or bus interchange is a structure where city buses or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. A bus station is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can st ...

was opened next to the train station. There is a newly built second underpass, which connects the bus terminal with platforms. In the years 2021–2023, a major reconstruction of the station building is planned.

Train services

Plzeň is an important centre of Czech railway transport, with the crossing of five main railway lines: * line Nr. 170: Prague –

Beroun Beroun (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants. It lies at the confluence of the Berounka and Litavka rivers. Beroun creates a conurbation with Králův Dvůr, former part of Beroun. ...

– Plzeň –

Cheb Cheb (; ) is a town in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře River. Before the Expulsion of Germans from Czechoslovakia, expulsion of Germans in 1945, the town was the centre of the G ...

* line Nr. 180: Plzeň –

Domažlice Domažlice (; ) is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urban monument reser ...

–

Furth im Wald Furth im Wald (in Czech ''Brod nad Lesy'', resp. ''Bavorský Brod'') is a town in Bavaria, Germany, near the Czech Republic, Czech border in the Bavarian Forest, northeast of Cham, Germany, Cham, and southwest of Domažlice. The city is known as ...

(Germany) * line Nr. 183: Plzeň –

Klatovy Klatovy (; ) is a town in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban monument zone. Administr ...

–

Železná Ruda Železná Ruda (; ) is a town in Klatovy District in the Plzeň Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 1,600 inhabitants. It is one of the important sports and tourist centres of the Bohemian Forest. Administrative division Železná Ruda con ...

* line Nr. 160: Plzeň –

Žatec Žatec (; ) is a town in Louny District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. It lies on the Ohře River. Žatec is famous for an over-700-year-long tradition of growing Saaz hops, Saaz noble hops u ...

* line Nr. 190: Plzeň –

Local transport

The station is served by tram lines 1 and 2. There are also numerous trolleybus lines.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plzen hlavni nadrazi Buildings and structures in Plzeň Railway stations in Plzeň Region Railway stations in the Czech Republic opened in 1862 Art Nouveau railway stations 1862 establishments in the Austrian Empire Transport in Plzeň