Kortrijk railway station (Dutch: Station Kortrijk; French: Gare de Courtrai)[a] is the main railway station in Kortrijk, West Flanders, Belgium. The station was first inaugurated on 22 September 1839. With around 10,000 passengers per day, Kortrijk is the fifteenth-busiest railway station in Belgium, and the second in West Flanders.[1] It is operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB).[2]
The following railway lines converge in this station: line 66 (Bruges–Kortrijk) and line 75 (Ghent–Mouscron). Railway lines 69 (Kortrijk–Ieper–Poperinge) and 89 (Denderleeuw–Kortrijk) begin just outside the station. Several national Intercity-trains, Interregio-trains and local trains also stop there, as do international trains like the Intercity-train to Lille-Flandres station in Lille, France.
History
The first railway line, connecting Kortrijk to Ghent, was inaugurated on 22 September 1838 by King Leopold I and Queen Louise-Marie. The first railway station on this site was inaugurated in 1839.
The building itself was enlarged several times. The second building opened in 1857 and was enlarged in 1876. This monumental building originally included a glass and iron construction covering the platforms and rails. This construction and the original building were severely damaged during World War II.
After the war, a brand new station was inaugurated on 7 July 1956. The structure covering the platforms and rails was demolished and replaced by awnings covering the platforms.
