The train station building at Plzeň-Jižní Předměstí is set for a renovation costing nearly 100 million

Plzeň – The Railway Administration (SŽ) has announced a tender for a company to reconstruct the station building in Plzeň-South Suburb, the second largest and busiest station in the city towards Domažlice and Cheb. The highest acceptable bid price is 95.2 million crowns. Construction work is expected to start in October this year and will last for two years, said the spokesperson of SŽ, Radka Pistoriusová.

"The monument-protected building will undergo a complete reconstruction, which will include roof repair, facade work, window and door replacements, technical grounding including the replacement of outdated conduits, and adjustments to publicly accessible spaces. An elevator will be constructed to connect the ticket hall with the platforms, where new public restrooms and an information system will also be created,” she stated.

The former arrival building at the Plzeň-South Suburb station was opened to the public in 1921. The main reason for its construction was the increasing number of passengers, especially workers commuting by train to work in nearby factories. It was built in the neo-Renaissance style and complemented an older, Art Nouveau building from 1904, which stood on the opposite side of the street and later served as the departure building. "The former arrival building serves railway transport today,” the spokesperson added. The station was put into operation in 1904 as Plzeň-Imperial Suburb.

Originally, the station complex consisted of two opposite station buildings separated by the Ivana Martina Jirous bridge and Koperníkova Street. The older one was taken out of service in the 1990s. Since 2001, it has served as a cultural center called Moving Station (Hemžící se zastávka), which has been rented and operated by the local center for cultural and social projects, JOHAN, since September 2015. It is a space for concerts, exhibitions, and theatrical performances. Before 2015, when Plzeň was the European Capital of Culture, the former station underwent reconstruction, and a theater hall and additional facilities were created there. The building was renovated and owned by the Plzeň-based development company Klotz a.s.