Venezia Santa Lucia railway station
Encyclopedia
Venezia Santa Lucia railway station is a terminal station serving the comune
of Venice
, Italy
. It is also the only railway station in the historic city of Venice .
The station is one of Venice's two most important railway stations, the other one being Venezia Mestre
, a junction station
in Venice's mainland frazione
of Mestre
. Both stations are managed by Grandi Stazioni
, and they are linked with each other by the Ponte della Libertà
(Liberty Bridge) between the mainland and the historic city.
, the northernmost of the six historic sestieri (districts) of the historic city, near the western end of the Grand Canal. It is also at the 267 kilometres (165.9 mi) mark of the Milan–Venice railway.
A bridge over the Grand Canal, the Ponte degli Scalzi
(or Ponte dei Scalzi) (Bridge of the Barefoot [Monks]), links the concourse in front of the station with the sestiere of Santa Croce
. Since 2008, the concourse has also been linked with Piazzale Roma
, the car terminal in the historic city and main terminus for all bus routes to Venice, by another Grand Canal bridge, the controversial Ponte della Costituzione (Constitution Bridge).
The current station building is one of the few modernist buildings facing the Grand Canal. It is the result of a series of plans started by the rationalist architect Angiolo Mazzoni
in 1924, and developed by him over the next decade.
In 1934, a contest for a detailed design for the current station was won by Virgilio Vallot. Between 1936 and 1943, Mazzoni and Vallot collaborated on the construction of the station building, and Mazzoni also worked on the train hall. The work was completed only some years later, in 1952, to a design developed by another architect, Paul Perilli.
In November 2009, work began on the renovation of the station. The renovation will include improvements to the use of spaces and the flow of internal transit. Additionally, certain architectural elements will be recovered and restored, and the atrium will be altered to house several retail spaces. The project is estimated to take two years and cost 24 million euros.
Every day, approximately 450 trains stop at the station. Long distance trains use the central platforms, and the regional and suburban plaforms are located to the west.
The station is the terminus of several famous trains, including the Venice Simplon Orient Express.
(public water bus) or private water taxi boats. The nearby Piazzale Roma is the departure point for all car services and taxis for the mainland.
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
of Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. It is also the only railway station in the historic city of Venice .
The station is one of Venice's two most important railway stations, the other one being Venezia Mestre
Venezia Mestre railway station
Venezia Mestre railway station is a junction station in the comune of Venice, Italy. It is located within the mainland frazione of Mestre, and is classified by its owner, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana, as a gold category station....
, a junction station
Junction (rail)
A junction, in the context of rail transport, is a place at which two or more rail routes converge or diverge.This implies a physical connection between the tracks of the two routes , 'points' and signalling.one or two tracks each meet at a junction, a fairly simple layout of tracks suffices to...
in Venice's mainland frazione
Frazione
A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...
of Mestre
Mestre
Mestre is a city part of the comune of Venice, in Veneto, northern Italy.The city is connected to Venice by a large rail and road bridge, called Ponte della Libertà ....
. Both stations are managed by Grandi Stazioni
Grandi Stazioni
' is a member company of Italy's Ferrovie dello Stato group. It was created to rehabilitate and manage, even commercially, the 13 biggest Italian railway stations.-Stations under management:...
, and they are linked with each other by the Ponte della Libertà
Ponte della Libertà
Ponte della Libertà is a road bridge connecting the city of Venice to Mestre, on the mainland of Italy.Designed in 1932 by engineer Eugenio Miozzi, and opened by Benito Mussolini in 1933 as Ponte Littorio, the bridge is the only access for road vehicles to the capital city of Veneto...
(Liberty Bridge) between the mainland and the historic city.
Location
Venezia Santa Lucia is situated in CannaregioCannaregio
Cannaregio is the northernmost of the six historic sestieri of Venice. It is the second largest sestiere by land area and the largest by population, with 13,169 people as of 2007....
, the northernmost of the six historic sestieri (districts) of the historic city, near the western end of the Grand Canal. It is also at the 267 kilometres (165.9 mi) mark of the Milan–Venice railway.
A bridge over the Grand Canal, the Ponte degli Scalzi
Ponte degli Scalzi
The Ponte degli Scalzi , literally, "bridge of the barefoot [monks]", is one of only four bridges in Venice, Italy, to span the Grand Canal....
(or Ponte dei Scalzi) (Bridge of the Barefoot [Monks]), links the concourse in front of the station with the sestiere of Santa Croce
Santa Croce
Santa Croce is one of the six sestieri of Venice, northern Italy.-Geography:It occupies the north west part of the main islands, and can be divided into two areas: the eastern area being largely mediaeval, and the western - including the main port and the Tronchetto - mostly lying on land reclaimed...
. Since 2008, the concourse has also been linked with Piazzale Roma
Piazzale Roma
Piazzale Roma is a square in Venice, Italy.The square acts as the main bus station for Venice. There are bus links to Venice Marco Polo Airport and Treviso Airport. The square is close to the main Santa Lucia railway station for Venice, linked by the Ponte della Costituzione, a modern footbridge...
, the car terminal in the historic city and main terminus for all bus routes to Venice, by another Grand Canal bridge, the controversial Ponte della Costituzione (Constitution Bridge).
History
Work on the construction of the station began in 1860. To make room for the station and its forecourt, both a convent and the Church of Santa Lucia were demolished in 1861. The station then took the name of the church.The current station building is one of the few modernist buildings facing the Grand Canal. It is the result of a series of plans started by the rationalist architect Angiolo Mazzoni
Angiolo Mazzoni
Angiolo Mazzoni was a prolific state architect and engineer of the Italian Fascist government of the 1920s and 1930s.Mazzoni designed hundreds of public buildings, post offices and train stations during the Interwar period in Italy...
in 1924, and developed by him over the next decade.
In 1934, a contest for a detailed design for the current station was won by Virgilio Vallot. Between 1936 and 1943, Mazzoni and Vallot collaborated on the construction of the station building, and Mazzoni also worked on the train hall. The work was completed only some years later, in 1952, to a design developed by another architect, Paul Perilli.
In November 2009, work began on the renovation of the station. The renovation will include improvements to the use of spaces and the flow of internal transit. Additionally, certain architectural elements will be recovered and restored, and the atrium will be altered to house several retail spaces. The project is estimated to take two years and cost 24 million euros.
Features
As the current station building is low and wide, it does not dominate its surroundings. The flanks of its facade are decorated with Venetian lions. Behind the facade, there is a sizeable main hall with ticketing facilities, shops, offices and luggage storage facilities. The main hall also leads to sixteen platforms.Traffic
The station is used by about 82,000 passengers per day, or a total of around 30 million passengers per annum.Every day, approximately 450 trains stop at the station. Long distance trains use the central platforms, and the regional and suburban plaforms are located to the west.
The station is the terminus of several famous trains, including the Venice Simplon Orient Express.
Overview
The station is connected with the rest of Venice by the VaporettoVaporetto
Vaporetto is a waterbus operation. It has a set of 19 scheduled lines that serves locales within Venice, Italy, and travels between Venice and nearby islands, e.g., Murano and Lido. The natives used to call the Vaporetto Batèo...
(public water bus) or private water taxi boats. The nearby Piazzale Roma is the departure point for all car services and taxis for the mainland.
Vaporetto lines in the transit station
The stop (dock) is called Ferrovia and is served by eight ACTV Vaporetto lines:- 1 P.le Roma - Ferrovia - Rialto - San Marco - Lido
- 2 San Zaccaria - Giudecca - Tronchetto - P.le Roma - Ferrovia - Rialto - San Marco - (Lido)
- 41 Murano - F.te Nove - Ferrovia - P.le Roma - Giudecca - San Zaccaria - F.te Nove - Murano
- 42 Murano - F.te Nove - San Zaccaria - Giudecca - P.le Roma - Ferrovia - F.te Nove - Murano
- 51 Lido - F.te Nove - Ferrovia - P.le Roma - San Zaccaria - Lido
- 52 Lido - San Zaccaria - P.le Roma - Ferrovia - F.te Nove - Lido
- DM Murano - Ferrovia - P.le Roma - Tronchetto
- N San Zaccaria - Giudecca - Tronchetto - P.le Roma - Ferrovia - Rialto - San Marco - Lido (night line)
See also
- TrenitaliaTrenitaliaTrenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. Trenitalia is owned by Ferrovie dello Stato, itself owned by the Italian Government. It was created in 2000 following the EU directive on the deregulation of rail transport.-Passenger transport:...
- Grandi StazioniGrandi Stazioni' is a member company of Italy's Ferrovie dello Stato group. It was created to rehabilitate and manage, even commercially, the 13 biggest Italian railway stations.-Stations under management:...
- Rete Ferroviaria ItalianaRete Ferroviaria ItalianaRete Ferroviaria Italiana is an Italian company fully owned by Ferrovie dello Stato . RFI is the owner of Italy's railway network, it sets train paths, provides signalling, provides maintenance and other services for the railway network...
- VeniceVeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
- Venezia Mestre railway stationVenezia Mestre railway stationVenezia Mestre railway station is a junction station in the comune of Venice, Italy. It is located within the mainland frazione of Mestre, and is classified by its owner, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana, as a gold category station....
- Railway stations in ItalyRailway stations in ItalyRailway stations in Italy are maintained and operated by the RFI division of Ferrovie dello Stato Group. A minor part of them is operated by private and regional companies, conceded by the state.-Classification:...
External links
- "Grandi Stazioni SpA" official website
- Stazioni del Mondo - Description and images of Venezia Santa Lucia station