The state will repair the listed railway station building Plzeň-Jižní Předměstí for 85 million

Plzeň - The State Administration of Railways (SŽ) will repair the heritage-protected railway building of Plzeň-Jižní Předměstí, the second largest and busiest station in Plzeň towards Domažlice and Cheb. The more than 102-year-old building is awaiting a complete renovation. The environment in the public spaces will be improved, making them barrier-free. The winner of the tender for the work is the Pardubice construction company Chládek and Tintěra with a price of nearly 85 million crowns, spokesperson for SŽ Nela Eberl Friebová said today to ČTK. The work will start this December and is expected to be completed at the beginning of 2027.

"The overall renovation of the neo-Renaissance building at the Plzeň-Jižní Předměstí station will take place while the building is in operation and will be divided into three phases," the spokesperson said. SŽ will have the roof and façades repaired, windows and doors replaced, public spaces modified, and an elevator built that will connect the ticket hall with the platforms, where new public restrooms will be created at platform level. A new modern information and orientation system will also be installed.

The former arrival building at Plzeň-Jižní Předměstí station opened to the public in 1921. The main reason for its construction was the increasing number of passengers, especially workers commuting by train to jobs in surrounding factories. It complemented the older Art Nouveau building from 1904, which stood on the opposite side of the street and subsequently served as the departure building. Today, only the former arrival building serves railway transport. The station was launched in 1904 as Plzeň-Říšské předměstí.

The station complex originally consisted of two opposite station buildings, separated today by the bridge of Ivana Martina Jirouse and Koperníkova street. The older of the two was taken out of service in the 1990s. Since 2001, it has served as the Moving Station cultural center, which has been leased and operated by the local center for cultural and social projects, JOHAN, since September 2015. It is a space for concerts, exhibitions, and theater performances. Before 2015, when Plzeň was the European Capital of Culture, builders refurbished the former station and created a theater hall and other facilities. The building was renovated and owned by the Plzeň developer Klotz.

This January, SŽ also opened the main Plzeň railway station dispatch building from 1907 after a three-year renovation costing one billion crowns. The largest dispatch facility in western Bohemia, which serves up to 20,000 people daily, now has a new roof, façade, interiors including windows and doors, improved services for passengers, and barrier-free access. In the upper hall, there is a KFC fast food chain, a bookstore, a café, and a fresh food store. On the ground floor, there is a pizzeria, a newsstand, fast food, and in the area in front of the station, there is a municipal police station, a hairdresser, and a florist.