Oostende railway station

Oostende
Oostende railway station
General information
Location	Natiënkaai, 8400 Ostend Belgium
Coordinates	51°13′44″N2°55′33″E / 51.22889°N 2.92583°E / 51.22889; 2.92583
System	Railway Station
Owned by	NMBS/SNCB
Operated by	NMBS/SNCB
Lines	50A, Kusttram
Platforms	5
Tracks	8
Other information
IATA code	ZGJ
History
Opened	1838;187 years ago (1838)
Rebuilt	1913;112 years ago (1913)
Electrified	3 kV DC overhead on NMBS and 600 V DC overhead on the Kusttram.
Location Oostende Location within Belgium Show map of Belgium Oostende Oostende (Europe) Show map of Europe

Oostende railway station (Dutch : Station Oostende; French : Gare d'Ostende) ^[a] is a railway station in Ostend, West Flanders, Belgium. It is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB). ^[1]

History

The first Oostende railway station, before its demolition in 1879

The first station in Ostend was opened in 1838 during the reign of King Leopold I on the former Belgian railway line 62 to Torhout and is now a supermarket.

The current station was opened in 1913 during the reign of King Albert I. It is designed to connect trains and ferries and is built with Scottish granite, bluestone from Soignies and limestone from Euville. It is constructed in a neoclassical style inspired by the French 18th-century architect François Mansart and the Louis XVI style.

The station was served by a daily Thalys high-speed rail service to Paris between 1998 and 31 March 2015. ^[2]

Train services

Oostende railway station is a major hub on the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB) network with frequent InterCity trains serving Brugge railway station, Gent-Sint-Pieters, Brussels-South and Liège-Guillemins on Belgian railway line 50A. Connecting InterCity trains run to Antwerpen and Kortrijk.

The station is served by the following services: ^[3]

• Intercity services Ostend - Bruges - Gent - Brussels - Leuven - Liege - Eupen
• Intercity services Ostend - Bruges - Gent - Sint-Niklaas - Antwerpen
• Intercity services Ostend - Bruges - Kortrijk - Zottegem - Brussels - Brussels Airport

Preceding station	NMBS/SNCB			Following station
Terminus		IC 01		Brugge towards Eupen
		IC 02		Brugge towards Antwerpen-Centraal
		IC 23		Brugge towards Brussels National Airport

Kusttram

Kusttram run by De Lijn

Ostend is a major hub on the Kusttram, which is the coastal tramway run by De Lijn.^{[ citation needed ]}

Former ferries

Former Prinses Stephanie Jetfoil in the Port of Ostend approaching the terminal

Regie voor Maritiem Transport used to run services connecting to the Port of Dover connecting with Network SouthEast trains from Dover Western Docks to London Victoria and London Charing Cross stations. These ceased in 1994. In the past, ferries operated to Folkestone Harbour connecting with Folkestone Harbour station boat trains to London Victoria and London Charing Cross.^{[ citation needed ]}

Gallery

• 
  Frontal view
• 
  Interior of the station
• 
  View of the platforms and tracks
• 
  Place name sign on a platform

See also

• Belgium portal

• List of railway stations in Belgium
• Rail transport in Belgium

References

Footnotes

1. Officially Oostende (Dutch: Oostende; French: Ostende)

Citations

1. "OOSTENDE". www.belgianrail.be. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
2. Smet, Dries De. "Thalys doet laatste keer Oostende en Namen aan". De Standaard (in Dutch).
3. Belgian railways timetable brochures Archived 2015-02-05 at the Wayback Machine

External links

• Media related to Ostend train station at Wikimedia Commons