Palaiofarsalos-Kalambaka railway
View the line through the driver's seat between Karditsa and Trikala in May 2016.
Overview
StatusOperational
OwnerGAIAOSE[1]
LocaleGreece (Thessaly)
Termini
Stations7
Service
TypeCommuter rail
Operator(s)Hellenic Train
History
Opened1886 (metre gauge)
2001 (standard gauge)
Technical
Line length80.44 km (49.98 mi)[2]
Number of tracksSingle track[2]
CharacterSecondary
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
ElectrificationNo[2]
Operating speed100 km/h (62 mph) (highest)
Route map
Palaiofarsalos-Kalambaka railway
km
Line to Athens
0.0
 Palaiofarsalos
 Line to Thessaloniki
17.9
 Sofades
35.3
 Karditsa
00.0
 Fanari
00.0
 Magoula
63.5
 Trikala
83.8
 Kalambaka

The Palaiofarsalos to Kalambaka railway is a standard-gauge railway line that connects Kalambaka with the mainline station of Palaiofarsalos in Thessaly, Greece.[2] Originally opened as a metre-gauge railway in 1886, it was converted to standard gauge in 2001.

Route

The southern terminus of the line is Palaiofarsalos railway station near Farsala. Here, the line separates from the Piraeus–Platy railway and follows a branch of 80.44 km (49.98 mi). It continues to Karditsa and Trikala, and advances north-northwest to the northern terminus in Kalambaka.

The duration of the regular stopping service between Athens and Kalambaka is 4 hours and 11 minutes, but faster travel times can be achieved by taking the InterCity service to Thessaloniki and changing trains at Palaiofarsalos.[3]

Stations

The stations on the Palaiofarsalos–Kalambaka railway are:

History

The metre-gauge railway from Palaiofarsalos to Kalambaka was inaugurated on 16 June 1886 as part of the Thessaly Railways, with services to and from Volos.

After the First World War, the Greek state had planned the ambitious construction of several new rail lines and links, including a standard gauge line from Kalambaka onto Kozani and then Veroia creating a conversion of the route from Volos to Kalambaka on standard gauge. In 1927, the relevant decisions were made; starting in 1928, work was carried out on the construction of the new line from Kalambaka. But a year later, it was clear that the project would exceed the estimated costs many times over. In 1932, the construction work was stopped and remains unfinished.[4]

Freight traffic declined sharply when the state-imposed monopoly of OSE for the transport of agricultural products and fertilisers ended in the early 1990s. Many smaller stations on the network (with little passenger traffic) were closed, especially on the mainline section between Karditsa and Kalampaka.

In early 2001, the decision was taken to upgrade the line from 600 mm gauge to standard gauge and physically connect at Palaiofarsalos with the mainline from Athens to Thessaloniki. In 2001 the section between Kalampaka and Palaiofarsalos was converted from 600 mm gauge to standard gauge and physically connected at Palaiofarsalos with the mainline from Athens to Thessaloniki.[5] Since to upgrade, however, travel times improved and the unification of rail gauge allowed direct services, even InterCity services, to link Volos and Kalambaka with Athens and Thessaloniki. During the conversion, several smaller stations were closed; however, travel times improved, and the unification of rail gauge allowed direct services, even InterCity services, to link Kalambaka with Athens and Thessaloniki.

Services

The Palaiofarsalos–Kalambaka railway is used by the following passenger services:

  • Regional Palaiofarsalos-Kalambaka. The journey takes around 48 mins.[6]

Future

The Kozani–Amyntaio railway line and the future extension to Kalampaka and the Palaiofarsalos–Kalambaka railway as part of the western railway axis of Greece.

Upgrade

In early 2018 TrainOSE announced the upgrade of the line.[7] This upgrade will involve doubling the track and full electrification from Kalambaka (allowing faster nonstopping services to Athens and Thessaloniki) with the installation of new signalling and ETCS Level 1 system on the existing single-track railway line.[7] The tendering process was set for 11 October 2018, with funding being allocated to Operational Programme THESSALY 2014–2020.[7] With a completion date of 2022. The time for Athens to Kalampakas will be reduced to 2 hours and 50 minutes, Athens to Karditsa 2 hours and Athens to Trikala 2 hours and 40 minutes.[8] The projected costs estimate are set at €46,6500.[7]

Extensions

East: Kalambaka - Grevena - Siatista - Kozani - Panagia Soumela Vermiou - Veria According to press reports, there is OSE's planning for line extensions, from Kalambaka to Grevena, Siatista and Kozani at first stage

West: Kalampaka-Ioannina-Igoumenitsa (project duration from the completion of the study: 5 years). In the projected second stage expansion from Kalambaka to Ioannina and Igoumenitsa in the framework of the Railway Egnatia.[9] The expansion stations will be: Kalambaka-Malakasi-Anthochori-Ioannina-Kastritsa-Agios Nikolaos-Kristallopigi-Igoumenitsa.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Γαια Οσε". Gaiaose.com. Retrieved 2022-08-31.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Network Statement Validity: 2020 ANNEXES". Athens: OSE. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  3. ↑ "TRAINOSE ticketing". TrainOSE. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  4. ↑ Alexandros C. Gregoriou "The Kalambaka - Kozani - Veroia railway 1928 - 1932 (Kopie im Internet Archive)". Archived from the original on April 1, 2009. Retrieved November 22, 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  5. ↑ "Upgrading of Paleofarsalos – Kalambaka line". 20 March 2018.
  6. ↑ "Palaiofarsalos Station to Kalampáka - 3 ways to travel via train, and taxi".
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Signalling – Electrification of Paleofarsalos – Kalambaka". 20 December 2022.
  8. ↑ "Τέσσερις μνηστήρες για την ηλεκτροκίνηση της σιδηροδρομικής γραμμής Παλαιοφάρσαλος-Καλαμπάκα - ypodomes.com". Archived from the original on 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  9. ↑ "Έρχονται Σιδηροδρομικά έργα 1,5 δις ευρώ στην Ελλάδα - ypodomes.com". Archived from the original on 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2018-11-22.
  10. ↑ http://library.tee.gr/digital/kma/kma_m1310.pdf
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