Cologne Central Station: the story of one of Germany’s most important railway stations

Cologne Central Station (Köln Hauptbahnhof) is one of the most recognisable train stations in Germany, located in the heart of the city, right next to the monumental cathedral, which we wrote about HERE. As one of the most important transport hubs in Europe, it serves hundreds of thousands of passengers and more than 1,300 trains every day, combining long-distance, regional and urban transport. The impressive station building from the late 19th century did not withstand the devastation of the Second World War and the subsequent visions of the architects, as a result of which it was demolished and replaced by a modernist structure that serves travellers to this day.

The first plans for a central railway station in Cologne emerged in the mid-19th century, when the city was an important point on the map of the growing railway network. Around 1850, there were as many as five independent railway operators in Cologne, running their lines from different, unconnected stations. The fragmentation of the infrastructure necessitated the creation of a unified transport hub. The decision was accelerated by the choice of location for the Cathedral Bridge (Dombrücke), connecting Cologne on the left bank of the Rhine with Deutz on the right bank.

Centralbahnhhof in 1890. photo “Köln in frühen Photographien 1847-1914”, Schirmer/Mosel Verlag, München, 1988

In 1857, construction of the Centralbahnhof, the first integrated railway station, began according to plans by Hermann Otto Pflaume. The station opened two years later. Despite its modernity, it soon became apparent that the infrastructure was inadequate and modernisation became a necessity.

Along with the city’s expansion plans, there were initially plans to build a new central railway station, located in the new districts. Eventually, in 1883, it was decided to build a new facility on the same site, next to the cathedral, with elevated tracks to allow for underpasses. An architectural competition was held soon afterwards, with the architect from Georg Frentzen Aachen as the winner. Construction work began in 1886, with the demolition of around 140 houses. The new station building was given historical forms, mainly neo-Baroque. The construction was based on massive granite foundations, on which a striking body of stone finished and decorated with numerous details was erected. This was complemented by a tall clock tower. The large ticket hall contained 18 ticket offices, an information desk, an exchange office and offices. This was complemented by a separate baggage hall.

A large three-part platform hall, modelled on London St Pancras station, was erected next to the station building. The hall had the largest span of 64m and a length of 255m at the time. Under the huge canopy, a two-storey waiting room building was built, which was decorated with ceramics and small domes. From there, travellers could easily reach all platforms.

With the modernisation of railway traffic in the early 20th century, the station underwent further changes. All end tracks were converted into through tracks, increasing its capacity. During the Second World War, Cologne Central Station was severely damaged by massive bombing raids. As a result, the city centre was literally razed to the ground. After the war, it was considered for several years whether the damaged station should be rebuilt elsewhere. This resulted in very slow work and the inhabitants of Cologne had to make do with temporary solutions for almost a decade.

In the early 1950s, however, it was decided to rebuild the station on its original site. First, in 1953, the dilapidated long western building was replaced by a modern building with baggage handling and a hotel. The old building with ticket offices, only slightly damaged and provisionally repaired, was only demolished in 1955. One of the main reasons was that it was seen as a symbol of Prussian rule. There were also plans to demolish the platform hall, along the lines of the one at Cologne-Deutz station. The roof structure was always very dirty from soot from the steam locomotives, so that hardly any daylight could reach the interior. However, demolition was not carried out due to the cost. Electrification began in 1957 and provided a long-term solution to this problem.

Cologne railway station in 1900 and 2007. Photo by Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Photochrom Prints Collection and Raimond Spekking via Wikimedia Commons

The new station building, according to plans by architects Schmitt and Schneider, opened in 1957. It was designed in a modern style with a distinctive glass front and shell-shaped roof. In the following decades, the station was extended with new platforms and additional buildings, forming part of the station complex. During the demolition of the remains of the old station, the southern part of the plinth was retained, which was adapted in 1915 as an additional passenger waiting room. Today, this extensively renovated building is known as Wartesaal am Dom and houses a restaurant.

The square in front of the station in 1907 and today. Photo Vintage postcards private collection, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons and Hiroki Ogawa, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

At the turn of the 20th century, the station underwent extensive modernisation. Between 1997 and 2000, work was carried out at a cost of around 200 million marks, which included the construction of a modern ‘Colonaden’ shopping centre on the entrance level. An innovative, fully automatic baggage storage system was also installed, which is still the only one of its kind in Germany. Today, the station serves both long-distance trains (ICE, Eurostar, IC/EC) and regional trains, as well as city connections. It is also a transport hub connecting the two banks of the Rhine thanks to the Hohenzollern Bridge – an emblematic feature of the Cologne landscape.

Cologne Central Station is not only an important transport hub, but also a building of great historical and architectural significance. However, its location in the heart of the city and limited capacity make the infrastructure a bottleneck for rail traffic in the region. In view of this, Deutsche Bahn is planning further investments to increase its capacity, but implementing new solutions remains a major challenge.