105-year-old railway station in Hebei closes

A train station in China reached the end of the line on Monday night after 105 years of service.

Zhangjiakou Station, the terminal station of Jingzhang Rail that links Zhangjiakou, Hebei province, with Beijing, will no longer be used for passenger trains, according to the Jingzhang Rail administration.

Jingzhang Rail was the first railway wholly financed by domestic money, and took Chinese workers four years to build. Two trains a day used to stop at the station.

"We were not a part of its beginning, but we can witness its farewell," said Zhangjiakou resident Zhao Zhihai, who bought a ticket for the last train as a souvenir.

Tickets for the last train from Beijing to Zhangjiakou are sold out.

Liu Xudong retired as a employee on Jingzhang Rail three years ago. His father spent 34 years serving the railway and his son is a current employee.

He said Zhangjiakou Station is closing because it is no longer part of the rail network and its platform is inadequate for accommodating modern trains, Liu said.

Over half of the trains in China are now bullet trains, according to the latest national rail network schedule on Tuesday.

"The station's closure is bittersweet for me," Liu said. "On the one hand, three generations of my family worked for the station; on the other hand, its closure will improve train transportation in our city."

The station will not be torn down. Its ticket booths will be kept open for business to sell train tickets, according to the Jingzhang Rail administration. Locals have called on the government to convert the station into a museum.

The Zhangjiakou Station of the Jingzhang Rail, which links Zhangjiakou with Beijing, stopped service on Monday. Hei Ke / for China Daily