Matera Centrale railway station
Matera Centrale | |||||
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.png) Schematic map showing the new underground station (above) and the old surface one (below) | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Piazza della Visitazione 75100 Matera Matera, Matera, Basilicata Italy | ||||
| Coordinates | 40°39′59.42″N 16°36′4.68″E / 40.6665056°N 16.6013000°E | ||||
| Owned by | Ferrovie Appulo Lucane | ||||
| Line(s) | Bari-Altamura-Matera[1] | ||||
| Platforms | 2 (2 tracks) | ||||
| Connections |
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| History | |||||
| Opened | 1 September 1880 | ||||
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Matera Centrale is the main railway station in the Italian town of Matera, in Basilicata. It is owned by the Ferrovie Appulo Lucane (FAL), a private company based in Bari, and is the nearest station to the Sassi.
History
[edit]
The station was opened in 1915, as the southern terminal of the line from Bari and Altamura. In 1928 the Matera-Miglionico stretch was opened, part of the line to Ferrandina and Montalbano Jonico, which operated between 1932 and 1972.[2] Originally a surface station, it was transformed into an underground station.
Structure
[edit]The station is located in the town's centre in Piazza della Visitazione along Aldo Moro street, near the town hall. The old two-floor station building (40°40′0.5″N 16°36′5.76″E / 40.666806°N 16.6016000°E), preserved, is next to the modern one, located near a car park built over the original sidings. The modern structure is a one-floor square building with a pair of columns at its entrance. It has a pedestrian underpass to the platforms, serving two narrow gauge tracks (950 mm). The line is not electrified.
Transport
[edit]It is served, like the other two stations in the city, Matera Sud (the line terminal) and Matera Villa Longo, by several regional trains to Altamura and Bari Centrale.[3] three other minor stops, Matera Campo Sportivo, Matera Serra Rifusa and Matera Rondinelle, are no longer served by passenger traffic.
A project to rebuild the line to Ferrandina, which has a station on the Battipaglia-Potenza-Metaponto line (linking Salerno and Taranto), has been considered by the Ferrovie dello Stato. Works for the line, projected to use the 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge, started in 1986 to give Matera a direct rail link to the national network, following in part the former route. Due to lack of funds construction has ceased, with the works incomplete and structures abandoned.[4][5] Due to the distance to the town's centre (7 km) of the partly built new FS station,[6] which is located in the frazione of La Martella, it has been proposed to use the former route south of the town and to upgrade Matera Centrale, rebuilt as a multi-level underground station or simply enlarged.
See also
[edit]
- Potenza Centrale railway station
- List of railway stations in Basilicata
- History of rail transport in Italy
- Rail transport in Italy
- Railway stations in Italy
Notes and references
[edit]- ^ From 1932 to 1972 the line, from Matera, ended in Montalbano Jonico
- ^ See also: it:Ferrovia Bari-Matera-Montalbano Jonico
- ^ (in Italian) FAL official timetable (See: Bari-Altamura-Matera) Archived 2011-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ (in Italian) Article on Sky TG24
- ^ (in Italian) Dossier about Matera-Ferrandina railway
- ^ Picture of Matera Martella station on Flickr
External links
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| Overview | .jpg){kind=small} | |
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