Peplos railway station

Peplos railway station (Greek: Σιδηροδρομικός Σταθμός Πέπλος, romanized: Sidirodromikós stathmós Peplos) is a railway station that serves the town of Peplos, Evros in Eastern Macedonia and Thrace, Greece.[3] Located around 900 metres (3,000 ft) east of the town center, the station opened by the Chemins de fer Orientaux, (now part of OSE). Today TrainOSE operates just 4 daily Regional trains[4] to Alexandroupoli and Ormenio. The station is an unstaffed halt however there are waiting rooms available, if open.

Πέπλος Peplos
Location	Peplos Evros Greece
Coordinates	40°57′34″N 26°16′36″E[1]
Owned by	OSE
Line(s)	Regional Alexandroupoli–Svilengrad railway[2]
Platforms	2
Tracks	2
Train operators	TrainOSE
Construction
Structure type	at-grade
Platform levels	1
Bicycle facilities	No
Disabled access
Other information
Status	Unstaffed
Website	http://www.ose.gr/en/
Electrified	No
Services
Preceding station   TrainOSE   Following station Feres toward Alexandroupoli Regional Tychero toward Ormenio
Location
Peplos Location within Greece

History

The station was opened in 1874, two years after the line from Alexandroupoli (then Dedeagac) to Istanbul via Edirne was completed.[5] Built by the Chemins de fer Orientaux (CO), from Istanbul to Vienna. The railway reached Ftelia in 1873, when the line from Istanbul to Edirne and Bulgaria was opened.[6] When the railway was built it was all within the Ottoman Empire. Feres (Ottoman: Feretzik) was one of the stations on this line.[7]

During World War I the railway was an important link as the Ottoman Empire, Bulgaria and Austria-Hungary were all Central Allies. Following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire, its remaining imperial possessions were divided. The sections from Alexandroupoli to Svilengrad, except for a short section of about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi)[8] in Turkey serving Edirne Karaagaç station and for 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) between the Greek border and Svilengrad station in Bulgaria[9] come under the control of the French-Hellenic Railway Company (CFFH), a subsidiary of the CO, when the CFFH was incorporated in July 1929.

Under the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923, a new border between Greece and Turkey was established at the Evros river, just east of Peplos railway station, which had the result that the railway from Istanbul to Bulgaria entered Greece at Pythio, then re-entered Turkey at Edirne (Karaağaç railway station), re-entered Greece at Marasia, and finally entered Bulgaria between Ormenio and Svilengrad. This arrangement continued until 1971 when two new lines were opened. In Turkey, the Edirne Cut-off was opened to allow trains from Istanbul to Bulgaria to run through Edirne entirely on Turkish territory, so that trains such as the Orient Express no longer passed through Ormenio. In Greece, a line was opened to allow trains from Pythio to Bulgaria to stay on Greek territory and avoid Edirne. In 1954 the CFFH was absorbed by the Hellenic State Railways. In 1971, the Hellenic State Railways was reorganised into the OSE [10] taking over responsibilities for most for Greece's rail infrastructure. In the 1990s, OSE introduced the InterCity service to the Alexandroupoli–Svilengrad line[11] Which reduced travel times across the whole line.

In 2009, with the Greek debt crisis unfolding OSE's Management was forced to reduce services across the network. Timetables were cutback and routes closed, as the government-run entity attempted to reduce overheads. Services from Feres to Alexandroupoli were cut back to three trains a day, reducing the reliability of services, and passenger numbers. With passenger footfall in sharp decline. On 11 February 2011, all cross border routes were closed and international services (to Istanbul, Sofia, etc.) were ended. Thus, only two routes now connect Feres with Thessaloniki and Athens (and those with a connection to Alex / Polis), while route time increased as the network was "upgraded".[12] Services to/from Ormenio were replaced by bus. In 2014 TrainOSE replaced services to/from Dikaia with buses[13]

In 2017 OSE's passenger transport sector was privatised as TrainOSE, currently a wholly owned subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane[14] infrastructure, including stations remained under the control of OSE.

Facilities

The station is location on two levels, with the booking office, on one floor and waiting rooms on a lower level, there is a brick-built shelter on platform 1, but platform 2 is simply a raised platform Surface, with no equipment or facilities.

Services

As of 2020, the station is only served by two daily pairs of regional trains Alexandroupoli–Ormenio.[15]

Station layout

L Ground/Concourse	Customer service	Tickets/Exits
Level L1	Side platform, doors will open on the right
	Platform 1	towards Tychero ←
	Island platform, doors will open on the right
	Platform 2	towards Feres →

References

1. https://maps.me/catalog/transport/railway-station/peplos-4611686021026733960/
2. "OSE - 2017 Network Statement Annexes".
3. http://gr.geoview.info/peplos_railway_station,115613322w
4. https://tickets.trainose.gr/Peplos/
5. Δημήτριος Κίτσος, Ζαφειρία Κοσκίου και Φωτεινή Κυριακοπούλου (ed.). "Αλεξανδρούπολη: Εν αρχή ην … ο σιδηρόδρομος" (PDF). Πρόγραμμα Τοπικής Ιστορίας. 3ο Γυμνάσιο Αλεξ/πολης «Δόμνα Βισβίζη». pp. 34–35. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
6. "Trains of Turkey website". Archived from the original on 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
7. Πέτρος Γ. Αλεπάκος. "Η γραμμή του Οθωμανικού Ενωτικού Σιδηροδρόμου Θεσσαλονίκης – Κωνσταντινούπολης (JSC) στο Δεδέαγατς". Πολίτης της Θράκης. 234 (Σεπτέμβριος 2010). Αναδημ. στο alepakos.blogspot.gr. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
8. Modern measurement done on www.Openstreetmap.com indicate 10.2 km
9. Le Journal des chemins de fer, des mines et des TP, Paris, 29 March 1930 (in French)
10. Law 674/1971, Government Gazette A-192/1970
11. https://www.radioevros.gr/epeidi-ta-traina-einai-gemata-anthrwpous-kai-istories-kai-oxi-mono-eisitiria-kai-arithmous/
12. https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=el&u=https://m.naftemporiki.gr/story/807704&prev=search
13. https://www.typosthes.gr/thessaloniki/41820_kykloforiakes-rythmiseis-sto-tmima-alexandroypoli-dikaia-apo-tin-trainose
14. "It's a new day for TRAINOSE as FS acquires the entirety of the company's shares". ypodomes.com. Archived from the original on 15 September 2017. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
15. "Search schedule Alexandroupoli Port - Ferres". TrainOSE. Retrieved 25 June 2020.