Pretoria railway station is the central station

Central station

A central station usually designates the principal passenger railway station of cities which have multiple stations. The central station functions as the main transport hub for rail transport, normally with interchange with other modes of public transport...

 in Pretoria

Pretoria

Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...

, the executive capital of South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

. It is located between Pretoria's central business district

Central business district

A central business district is the commercial and often geographic heart of a city. In North America this part of a city is commonly referred to as "downtown" or "city center"...

 and Salvokop, in a 1910 building designed by Herbert Baker

Herbert Baker

Sir Herbert Baker was a British architect.Baker was the dominant force in South African architecture for two decades, 1892–1912....

. It is the terminus of various Metrorail

Metrorail Gauteng

Metrorail Gauteng is a network of commuter rail services in Gauteng province in South Africa, serving the Greater Johannesburg metropolitan area as well as Pretoria and its suburbs...

 commuter rail services in the northern part of Gauteng

Gauteng

Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. It was formed from part of the old Transvaal Province after South Africa's first all-race elections on 27 April 1994...

, and a stop on Shosholoza Meyl

Shosholoza Meyl

Shosholoza Meyl is a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa that operates long-distance passenger rail services. It operates various train routes across South Africa, carrying approximately 4 million passengers annually...

 inter-city services from Johannesburg

Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

 to Polokwane

Polokwane

Polokwane, meaning "Place of Safety",is a city in the Polokwane Local Municipality and the capital of the Limpopo province, South Africa. It is also often referred to by its former name, Pietersburg. Polokwane is a major urban centre, the biggest and most important north of Gauteng. The population...

 and Nelspruit

Nelspruit

Nelspruit is a city of more than 500,000 people situated in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province . Located on the Crocodile River, Nelspruit lies about west of the Mozambique border and east of Johannesburg. The towns of Nelspruit are Kanyamazane and Pienaar...

. Pretoria is also the northern terminus of the luxury Blue Train

Blue Train (South Africa)

The Blue Train travels an approximately journey in South Africa between Pretoria and Cape Town. It is one of the most luxurious train journeys in the world...

 service from Cape Town

Cape Town

Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...

. Platforms and tracks for the Gautrain

Gautrain

Gautrain is an mass rapid transit railway system in Gauteng Province, South Africa, which links Johannesburg, Pretoria, and OR Tambo International Airport...

 rapid-rail service are adjacent to the main-line station.

History

The first railway station in Pretoria was built in 1892 by the Netherlands-South African Railway Company

Netherlands-South African Railway Company

The Netherlands-South African Railway Company or NZASM was established in August 1884 in the Transvaal, and funded by Dutch, German and Transvaal capitalists....

 (NZASM) as the western terminus of its line to the harbour of Delagoa Bay (now Maputo

Maputo

Maputo, also known as Lourenço Marques, is the capital and largest city of Mozambique. It is known as the City of Acacias in reference to acacia trees commonly found along its avenues and the Pearl of the Indian Ocean. It was famous for the inscription "This is Portugal" on the walkway of its...

). In 1910, shortly before the creation of the Union of South Africa

Union of South Africa

The Union of South Africa is the historic predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into being on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the previously separate colonies of the Cape, Natal, Transvaal and the Orange Free State...

, the government of the Transvaal Colony decided to spend excess funds on constructing a new station for Pretoria, rather than surrendering the money to the new national government. The new station was the first public building designed by Herbert Baker

Herbert Baker

Sir Herbert Baker was a British architect.Baker was the dominant force in South African architecture for two decades, 1892–1912....

.

On 19 February 2001, a signalling failure led to major delays to Metrorail services in Pretoria. Angered by the delays, some commuters set a fire in a waiting room which spread to the roof of the building, which caved in. Almost all of the roof was destroyed, although the structure itself was saved. The restoration, which cost 18 million rand

South African rand

The rand is the currency of South Africa. It takes its name from the Witwatersrand , the ridge upon which Johannesburg is built and where most of South Africa's gold deposits were found. The rand has the symbol "R" and is subdivided into 100 cents, symbol "c"...

, started in June 2001 and finished in February 2002.

Services

Shosholoza Meyl

Shosholoza Meyl

Shosholoza Meyl is a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa that operates long-distance passenger rail services. It operates various train routes across South Africa, carrying approximately 4 million passengers annually...

 inter-city services originating from Johannesburg

Johannesburg

Johannesburg also known as Jozi, Jo'burg or Egoli, is the largest city in South Africa, by population. Johannesburg is the provincial capital of Gauteng, the wealthiest province in South Africa, having the largest economy of any metropolitan region in Sub-Saharan Africa...

 pass through Pretoria en route to Musina

Musina

Musina or Messina is the northernmost town in the Limpopo province of South Africa near the Limpopo River border to Zimbabwe. It has a population of between 20,000 and 40,000. Iron ore, coal, magnetite, graphite, asbestos, diamonds, semi-precious stones and copper are mined in the...

 via Polokwane

Polokwane

Polokwane, meaning "Place of Safety",is a city in the Polokwane Local Municipality and the capital of the Limpopo province, South Africa. It is also often referred to by its former name, Pietersburg. Polokwane is a major urban centre, the biggest and most important north of Gauteng. The population...

 and Komatipoort

Komatipoort

Komatipoort is a town situated at the confluence of the Crocodile and Komati Rivers in Mpumalanga province, South Africa. The town is 8km from the Crocodile Bridge Gate into the Kruger Park, and just 5km from the Mozambique border and 65km from the Swazi border. It is a small, quiet town with some...

 via Nelspruit

Nelspruit

Nelspruit is a city of more than 500,000 people situated in northeastern South Africa. It is the capital of the Mpumalanga province . Located on the Crocodile River, Nelspruit lies about west of the Mozambique border and east of Johannesburg. The towns of Nelspruit are Kanyamazane and Pienaar...

. Metrorail

Metrorail (South Africa)

Metrorail is an operator of commuter rail services in the major urban areas of South Africa. It is a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa , a state-owned enterprise which is responsible for most passenger rail services in South Africa...

 commuter services operate from Pretoria west to Atteridgeville

Atteridgeville

Atteridgeville, part of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality, is a township located on the west of Pretoria, South Africa. It is bordered to the west by Saulsville, to the east by Proclamation Hill; to the south by Laudium and to the north by Lotus Gardens.-History:Atteridgeville was...

, north to Soshanguve and Ga-Rankuwa

Ga-Rankuwa

Ga-Rankuwa is a township located about 37 km north of Pretoria. Provincially it falls under Gauteng province but it used to be under North West Province, as it once fell under Bophuthatswana region ruled by Lucas Mangope under the apartheid regime....

, east to Mamelodi, and south to Johannesburg Park Station

Johannesburg Park Station

Johannesburg Park Station is the central railway station in the city of Johannesburg, South Africa, and the largest railway station in Africa. It is located between the Central Business District and Braamfontein, in the block bordered by Rissik, Wolmarans, Wanderers and Noord Streets...

. The Gautrain

Gautrain

Gautrain is an mass rapid transit railway system in Gauteng Province, South Africa, which links Johannesburg, Pretoria, and OR Tambo International Airport...

 connects Pretoria station to Park Station, with another going east from Pretoria to Hatfield

Hatfield, Pretoria

Hatfield is a suburb in Pretoria with a high density of students and student accommodation due to hosting the University of Pretoria's main campus...

.