Nova Gorica railway station
Gorizia is a town in north eastern Italy, situated on the Isonzo River north of Trieste. By treaty in 1947 Yugoslavia received the northern outskirts of the town, and the adjoining Yugoslav town of Nova Gorica was developed. With the breakup of Yugoslavia, the frontier remained as the division between Italy and Slovenia until the implementation of the Schengen Agreement by Slovenia on December 21, 2007. Since May 2011, these towns have been joined in a common trans-border metropolitan zone, administered by a joint administration board. This report is part of a series from a day I spent visiting the borders in this divided town. Links to the right for the other reports as I did them.
Nova Gorica railway station serves the town and municipality of Nova Gorica, in the Slovenian Littoral region of Slovenia, and is also easily accessible from the town of Gorizia, Italy. I visited this point as part of the IBRG SITEX-23 expedition.
The station forms part of the Bohinj Railway, between Jesenice, Slovenia, and Trieste, Italy. Due to its geographical position, it has undergone several changes of nationality and name.
From its opening in 1906 until 1919, the station was located within the Austrian Empire, and was named Görz Staatsbahnhof (English: Gorizia station of the State Railways). In 1919, as part of border changes following World War I, it was annexed by the Kingdom of Italy, and renamed Stazione di Gorizia Nord. In 1923, the station was renamed again, this time as Stazione di Gorizia Montesanto.
In 1947, control of the station passed to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, with the station being located within the Socialist Republic of Slovenia, and renamed Železniška postaja Nova Gorica. Slovenia became independent in 1991, but on that occasion the station was not renamed. The station is currently owned and operated by Slovenske železnice (SZ).
Initially a key route in the Austro-Hungarian Empire as part of the TransAlpine Railway, After WW1 the territory became part of Italy and after WW2 part of Yugoslavia and ultimately Slovenia. Nova Gorica, a new town grew up around the town. There are rail links to its sister station in the Italian side of town.
The railway station whilst not directly on the border, and as an exclusively Slovenian station might be considered not to be of current interest to border enthusiasts. It is relevant to our border review however as it is so close to the border and dominates Europa Square which is the heart of the joint town. Its changes in ownership gives an important historical dimension too.
Date of Visit: 30 September 2023
Barry's Borderpoints 