Wieliczka 2022-08-06
Wieliczka Park railway station.
Geographic coordinates: 49.989N 20.048E.
Currently (2022) there are three railway stations (railway stops) in Wieliczka: Wieliczka Rynek - Mine (final stop), Wieliczka Park and Wieliczka Bogucice. There used to be the final stop at Wieliczka Rynek. This chapter is about Wieliczka Park station.
Wieliczka Park.
The Wieliczka Park station was the first railway station in Wieliczka and was called Wieliczka. It was launched in 1857. In the first years of operation, it was a terminal station. In its heyday, the Wieliczka station consisted of seven tracks. There was no turntable at the station, so the locomotives were going one way in the tender forward.
Another railway route to Myślenice and further to Kalwaria Zebrzydowska was planned from the Wieliczka station. This trail was never built. The idea behind this route was to shorten the salt transport route to Vienna.
From the Wieliczka station, the tracks continued towards the various shafts of the Wieliczka mine. The track layout has changed several times. The mine had its own stable (many wagons were pulled by horses) and its own locomotive, established in 1890.
At the Wieliczka station, a footbridge was built over the tracks, which was used until 2010. An island platform with two platform edges was also built. In 1960, when the railway line was electrified, only the main tracks had a catenary. The remaining tracks were served by steam locomotives from the mine or from the Kraków Płaszów depot. Later, diesel locomotives were introduced, mainly SM30 and SM42.
In the 90s of the twentieth century, freight traffic gradually died down, and only passenger traffic remained. The station slope was gradually overgrown with grass. Passenger trains only stopped at the northern edge of the island platform. In 2005, the station building was closed to passengers, and the upper floor was occupied by apartments for railroad families. The building was systematically devastated by vandals who destroyed the facade and broke windows and doors.
In the period 2011-2013, the entire Wieliczka station was modernized. Redundant tracks were removed, leaving only the tracks at the island platform. Several tracks have been left as relics of the old track system. For example, two tracks at the station building and a track towards the mine. On the part of the former station platform, a small park has been arranged, with alleys, benches, lanterns and a so-called gauge. There is also a wooden locomotive with a carriage for children.
During the works, the footbridge over the tracks was dismantled, which required renovation and in the current conditions would not be accessible to people in wheelchairs and prams. The passage through the tracks was made at the level of the rails through chicanes. The station building with waiting room and toilets has been completely renovated.
At the station, there are containers with railway traffic control devices, including those that handle semaphores and turnouts. Unfortunately, vandals have already managed to disfigure them with ugly and vulgar paintings. Stop vandals!
Written by Karol Placha Hetman