Thessaloniki–Alexandroupolis railway
| Thessaloniki–Alexandroupoli railway | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Overview | |||
| Status | Fully operational | ||
| Owner | OSE | ||
| Locale | Greece (Central Macedonia, East Macedonia and Thrace) | ||
| Termini | |||
| Service | |||
| Operator(s) | TrainOSE | ||
| History | |||
| Opened | 1896 | ||
| Technical | |||
| Line length | 440.8 km (273.9 mi) | ||
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge | ||
| |||
The Thessaloniki–Alexandroupoli railway is an about 441 km long railway in northern Greece connecting the Central Macedonian city of Thessaloniki with Alexandroupoli in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, via Serres. At the Strymonas station there is a connection towards Sofia. As of 2015[update], there is regular passenger service to Alexandroupoli with connecting services to Dikaia, as well as international services to Sofia and via Skopje to Belgrade, while the international service to Istanbul ("Friendship Express") remains suspended.
Course
The western terminus of the Thessaloniki–Svilengrad railway is the New Railway Station, Thessaloniki. It runs north passing Kilkis, until it turns east at the shore of Dojran Lake. It runs along the north shore of Lake Kerkini, and crosses the river Strymonas near Sidirokastro. The line north to Sofia (border crossing Promachonas/Kulata) branches off here. The railway continues east along Serres and Drama. It crosses the river Nestos at Paranesti, and follows it until Toxotes. It passes Xanthi and Komotini, and reaches the Aegean Sea at Alexandroupoli, where it ends at the Alexandroupoli railway station, which is further connected to Dikaia via the Alexandroupoli–Svilengrad railway.
History
The line was opened in 1896, to extend the preexisting railway line from Istanbul towards Central Macedonia.
Services
The Thessaloniki–Svilengrad railway is used by the following passenger services:
- Intercity and regular services Thessaloniki–Alexandroupoli[2]
References
- ^ a b "OSE - 2011 Network Statement".
- ^ "2014/15 Intercity schedule" (PDF). TrainOSE. Retrieved 11 March 2015.