Gare du Sud
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Gare du Sud is a small railway station in Nice, France. The station was the terminus of a narrow-gauge railway from Digne-les-Bains until December 1991.
Work on the station began in 1890 and finished in 1892 by Prosper Bobin for the Compagnie des Chemins de fer du Sud de la France. The station front is rather monumental and impressive with a high front, with two pavilions to the side. A tall rooftop covered the tracks that went to Grasse and Puget-Théniers. Lines to Digne and Annot opened in 1911.
The passenger building was built in neo-classic style, not compromising on elegance but at a not too high cost. The rooftop was the pavillion of Russia and Austria-Hungary of the 1889 Exposition Universelle in Paris.
After World War II, the line to Meyrargues closed and almost took the entire network with it. The Chemins de Fer de Provence closed the Gare du Sud in December 1991 and moved its terminating services to Nice CP. Ownership of the station building was transferred from l'Etat Français to Nice Municipality. Amidst public outcry, the station was almost dismantled but public demonstrations saved it.
Although the building has now ben saved from destruction, its future is uncertain as several projects exist, including the moving of several artistic associations in need of a new home, and the moving of Nice's town hall.
