Retiro-Mitre, or simply Retiro, is one of the six large mainline railway station termini in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Located in the neighborhood of Retiro, it serves as terminal station for the Mitre Line that runs local trains to the northern suburbs of the Buenos Aires metropolitan area. It also functions as terminal station for the national General Mitre Railway, being one of Argentina's largest railway stations..
Retiro Mitre | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terminal station | |||||
 Station facade | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Av. Ramos Mejía 1358, Buenos Aires Argentina | ||||
| Coordinates | 34°35′29″S 58°22′29″W / 34.59139°S 58.37472°W | ||||
| Owned by | Government of Argentina | ||||
| Operated by | Trenes Argentinos | ||||
| Line(s) | Mitre | ||||
| Platforms | 8 | ||||
| Connections | Subte   Retiro Belgrano Retiro San Martín Bus terminus | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Fare zone | Retiro, Buenos Aires | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | August 1, 1915 | ||||
| Designated | 2006 | ||||
| |||||
Retiro Mitre is accessible by the C line and Line E of the Buenos Aires Metro system and by numerous local public bus services. The station will also be accessible by Line H of the metro once its extension is complete. The station is also near Retiro bus station (Terminal de Omnibus), the principal long-distance bus terminal in Buenos Aires.
In 2006, the station was declared National Historic Monument of Argentina.[1]
History
editThe Edwardian-style station building was designed by the British architects Eustace L. Conder, Roger Conder and Sydney G. Follet together with the engineer Reginald Reynolds. Building began in June 1909 and the station was opened on 1 August 1915 while being operated by the Central Argentine Railway. The steel structure for the building was made in Liverpool, England, and re-assembled in Argentina. For many years it was considered to be the most important example of structural engineering in South America and architecturally one of the finest buildings in the world. The train shed was supplied by the Butterley Company and closely resembles that at St Pancras in London.
After the railway Nationalisation in Argentina, the station became part of the Bartolomé Mitre Railway, a division of state-owned Ferrocarriles Argentinos, which operated commuter rail and long-distance services to Tucumán (being the Estrella del Norte the most notable of them)[2] When the entire rail network was privatised in the early 1990s, Retiro Mitre was taken over by Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA) for commuter services and Tucumán Ferrocarriles for long-distance journeys to the province, also crossing Rosario and Santiago del Estero.[3] Other private companies operating the station were Corredores Ferroviarios[4][5] and Ferrocentral.[6]
In 1997 the Retiro Mitre station was declared a National Monument.[7]
In 2015 plans were announced to expand the station with new platforms to accommodate long-distance services operated by Operadora Ferroviaria Sociedad del Estado. The new part of the station would have new road access from Libertador Avenue, replacing land currently used for storage of rolling stock. The existing buildings are also currently being renovated, including restoration of the train shed.[8]
Services
editState-owned Trenes Argentinos operates the commuter rail services calling at José León Suárez (General San Martín Partido), Tigre, and Bartolomé Mitre along its three branches. Long-distance services to Rosario and Tucumán cities are also operated by the same company.
In media
editSeveral films have been filmed at the station, the most important of which are Evita and The Secret in Their Eyes. Also several novels take place in the station and its surroundings.
Historic operators
edit| Operator | Period |
|---|---|
| 1915–1948 | |
| 1948–1991 | |
| 1991–94 | |
| 1995–2012 | |
| 2005–2014 | |
| 2012–14 | |
| 2014–15 | |
| 2015–present |
- Notes
- ^ Temporary operator prior to the privatization of commuter rail services.
- ^ Only for long distance services to northern provinces.
- ^ a b Temporary operator after concessions to TBA were revoked.
Gallery
edit-
Great hall, 1915
-
Coffeehouse, 2013
-
Platform roofs, 2015
-
North view, 2015
-
Train platforms, 2017
-
Hall, 2018
See also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ Estación Retiro on GCBA
- ^ "Un tren argentino para los argentinos"
- ^ Advertisement of TUFESA services
- ^ "De a uno por línea, para mejor control", Página 12, 12 Feb 2014
- ^ "Metrovías operará las líneas Mitre y San Martín", En el Subte, 12 Feb 2014
- ^ "Vuelve el tren a Tucumán", Riel FM, 12 Sep 2005 (Archive)
- ^ Decreto 437/97 (Spanish) Retrieved 2010-12-27
- ^ Nuevo acceso y andenes para larga distancia en Retiro Mitre - EnElSubte, 3 April 2015