The railway station in Zbąszyń, located in western Greater Poland, has been rebuilt. It is a sizable building that now combines respect for historic architecture and with contemporary standards. The completed works were announced by the PKP S.A. company.
The railway station building in Zbąszyń was built between 1927 and 1929 according to a design by architect Adolf Piller, a professor at the State Building School in Poznań and previously a city architect in Lviv. The building’s construction was directly linked to the new shape of Poland’s borders after World War I – Zbąszyń became a border town with the Weimar Republic. In the context of building the identity and prestige of the young state, the modern, representative railway station played a huge role. Its image function was particularly important – as it was often the first contact of visitors with the territory of the Republic. Its construction was also inspired by the General National Exhibition in Poznań in 1929, which presented the achievements of 10 years of independent Poland. A few kilometres further on, already on the German side, there was a new railway junction Neu Bentschen (today’s Zbąszynek). The appearance of both the German and Polish border stations was also important for image reasons.
Comprehensive modernisation with respect for the past
The railway station in Zbąszyń was rebuilt at a cost of almost PLN 42.45 million. The façade of the building was restored, including the distinctive approximately 25-metre-high tower with the emblem of Poland visible from the platforms. The window and door carpentry was also renewed, and the building received lighting that emphasises its modernist character.
The railway station in 1930:
The interior of the station has undergone a major refurbishment. On the ground floor, there is a modern space for traveller services – a waiting room with new benches, Greater Poland Railway ticket offices, electronic information boards, a voice information system and toilets. There will also be space for vending machines with drinks and snacks, a ticket machine and a telephone charging point.
Commercial premises and spaces for local sports and leisure initiatives are planned in other parts of the building. Interestingly, the station’s lobby also includes a special room for storing bicycles with an entrance from the platforms – an innovative solution, never before seen in railway buildings in Poland.
Accessibility and safety
The modernisation also included adapting the building to the needs of people with disabilities and reduced mobility. Guiding paths for the blind and visually impaired, signage in Braille and two lifts were installed. Security was increased through the installation of monitoring systems, access control, burglary and assault alarms and fire protection. The immediate surroundings of the station also underwent a metamorphosis, with new paving and landscaping, and redundant outbuildings and garages were demolished to create a more aesthetically pleasing and functional space.
A regional hub with potential
The station in Zbąszyń serves around 70 trains daily, including long-distance and regional connections. Seven PKP Intercity trains depart from the station, including those to Warsaw, Poznań, Szczecin, Świnoujście, Gorzów Wielkopolski and Zielona Góra. Many more trainsets stop in nearby Zbąszynek, including international trains running between Poland and Germany (trains from Warsaw and the Tricity to Berlin).
Zbąszynek railway station is an example of a successful combination of history and modernity – it not only fulfils the role of transport, but also builds the identity of the place and its inhabitants, offering a functional space, friendly and open to diverse needs. It is an investment that proves that modernity does not have to mean giving up on heritage – on the contrary, it can be a continuation of it.
Finally, a page from history. At the end of October 1938, about 9,000 Jews of Polish origin, deported from the territory of the Third Reich by the Gestapo as part of the so-called Polenaktion, were brought to the railway station in Zbąszyń by trains. These people were deprived of their Polish citizenship under a law in force since the spring of the same year, and at the same time were forced to leave Germany. Approximately 6,000 of them were sent to a temporary transit camp in and around Zbąszyń, organised in former cavalry barracks, stables and a disused mill. Over time, the number of those in the camp gradually decreased.
source: PKP S.A.
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