Maradana Railway Station (, ) is a major rail hub in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The station is served by Sri Lanka Railways, with many inter-city and commuter trains entering each day. It is the terminus of several intercity trains.
Maradana is home to the suburban-Colombo network's centralised traffic control centre.
History When the railways first opened in Ceylon (Sri Lanka) in 1864, trains terminated at Colombo Terminus railway station, a now-retired station near Maradana. In 1906, a project was launched to reorganise the railway within the Colombo area. Colombo Terminus Station was closed and replaced by the new Maradana Station.
Fort railway station was opened in 1917, as a new central station for Colombo. Today, Maradana and Fort are the primary rail gateways to Colombo.
Location Maradana Station is in Maradana, located next to the Elphinstone Theatre and near the Maradana railway yards. Colombo Fort Station is a couple kilometres away from Maradana Station.
Features Maradana Station features a two-storey building housing the ticket office, waiting room, and Sri Lanka Railways offices. A footbridge leads to the platforms. The main building is an example of British colonial architecture.
The railways operates its centralised traffic control (CTC) for the Colombo area through a facility at Maradana. The CTC handles about 290 trains per day.
Services The station is served from the north-east by the Main line, which leads to several other major routes in Sri Lanka's railway network. To the south-east of the station, the Kelani Valley Line connects Maradana with many other area of Colombo. The station is served to the west by the Coastal line, leading to Galle and Matara. Most of these Coastal-line trains terminate at Maradana Station.
Maradana station is also a hub for commuter rail within the Colombo metropolis.
Inter-city trains
Service Route Frequency 4001 & 4002 Yal Devi Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Vavuniya – (Jaffna) – (Kankesanturai) Daily 4451, 4468 & 4470 Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Polgahawela – Kurunegala - Maho Daily 8085, 8086, 4085, & 4086 Rajarata Rajina Anuradhapura – Maho – Kurunegala – Polgahawela – Maho – Ragama – Colombo Maradana – Colombo Fort – Panadura - Galle – Matara Daily 6011 & 6012 Udaya Devi Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Batticaloa Daily 1015 & 1016 Udarata Menike Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Polgahawela – Peradeniya - Nawalapitiya - Hatton - Nanu Oya - Pattipola - Ella - Badulla Daily 1005 & 1006 Podi Menike Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Polgahawela – Peradeniya - Nawalapitiya - Hatton - Nanu Oya - Pattipola - Ella - Badulla Daily Tikiri Menike Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Polgahawela – Peradeniya - Nawalapitiya - Hatton - Nanu Oya - Pattipola - Ella - Badulla Daily Senkadagala Menike Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Polgahawela – Peradeniya - Kandy Daily 8058 & 8059 Ruhunu Kumari Colombo Maradana – Colombo Fort – Panadura - Galle – Matara Daily 8760 & 8327 Samudra Devi Colombo Maradana – Colombo Fort – Panadura - Galle – Matara Daily 8056 & 8057 Galu Kumari Colombo Maradana – Colombo Fort – Panadura - Galle – Matara Daily 8096 & 8097 Sagarika Colombo Maradana – Colombo Fort – Panadura - Galle-Matara-Beliatta Daily 3427 & 3803 Muthu Kumari Colombo Fort – Colombo Maradana – Ragama - Negombo – Chilaw - Bangadeniya - Puttalam Daily
Commuter and local trains Route Frequency Towards Panadura - Towards Veyangoda - Towards Ja Ela - Kelani Valley Line -
Continuity Preceding station Sri Lanka Railways Following station
See also Railway stations in Sri Lanka Sri Lanka Railways List of railway stations by line order in Sri Lanka
References