Future of Prague's Masarykovo nádraží railway station uncertain

There have been reports that Prague’s oldest functioning railway station, Masarykovo nádraží, could disappear in a few years. City Hall is set to discuss the future of the station in the very near future, but there are already indications that the station building could be converted into a shopping centre and the land around it totally transformed.

Masarykovo nádraží is around five minutes walk from Prague’s main railway station, Hlavní nádraží, but; opened in 1845, it predates Hlavní nádraží by a quarter of a century. Today Masarkyovo nádraží is rather the worse for wear; the large panelled windows onto Hlavičkova St are covered in ugly stickers, while the interior is shabby and often used as a shelter by winos.

If some members of Prague City Hall have their way, things will look completely different within the next five or 10 years. There are reportedly plans to preserve the façade, but turn the innards of the station building into a shopping centre, in a project similar to the nearby Palladium on Náměstí republiky, formerly an army barracks.

Masarykovo nádraží

But that’s not the only change envisaged. Civic Democrat MP and ex deputy mayor of Prague Jan Burgermeister – the man behind the plan – told aktualne.cz that the whole area will be transformed; existing streets should be extended, with offices and flats built on the area vacated with the closing of the station.

The trains which carry thousands of passengers through Masarykovo nádraží today would be redirected to Hlavní nádraží, a change which Mr Burgermeister says will make some connecting journeys easier. Which sounds positive.

On the other hand, many would miss the convenient city centre railway station, if it really is turned into a mall. And others will be asking: does Prague actually need another shopping centre?