Liège-Guillemins
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Liège-Guillemins
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 Railway Station
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| Location | Place des Guillemins, Liège |
| Coordinates | 50°37′29″N 5°34′01″E / 50.62472°N 5.56694°ECoordinates: 50°37′29″N 5°34′01″E / 50.62472°N 5.56694°E |
| Owned by | Infrabel |
| Operated by | National Railway Company of Belgium |
| Line(s) | 4, 34, 36, 37, 40, 43, 125 |
| Platforms | 5 |
| Tracks | 10 |
| History | |
| Opened | 1842-05-01 2009-09-18 |
| Rebuilt | 2009-09-18 |
| Traffic | |
| Passengers (2009) | 6.26 millions |
Liège-Guillemins railway station (IATA: XHN) is the main station of the city of Liège, the third largest city in Belgium. It is one of the most important hubs in the country and is one of the 3 Belgian stations on the high-speed rail network. The station is used by 15,000 people every day which makes it the eleventh busiest station in Belgium and the third in Wallonia.
In 1838, only three years after the first continental railway, a line linking Brussels and Ans, in the northern suburbs of Liège, was opened. The first railway station of Liège-Guillemins was inaugurated in May 1842, linking the valley to the upper Ans station. In 1843, the first international railway connection was born, linking Liège to Aachen and Cologne.
The station was modernised and improved in 1882 and in 1905 for the World Fair in Liège. This Beaux-Arts station was replaced in 1958 by a modern International style building that was used until June 2009, a few months before the opening of the new Calatrava-designed station. The second station was completely demolished to complete the remaining sections of the new station.
The new station by the architect Santiago Calatrava was officially opened on 18 September 2009, with a show by Franco Dragone. It has 9 tracks and 5 platforms (three of 450 m and two of 350 m). All the tracks around the station have been modernised to allow high speed arrival and departure.
The new station is made of steel, glass and white concrete. It includes a monumental arch, 160 metres long and 32 metres high.
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