Ipoh railway station
Ipoh 怡保 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Location | 30100 Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | Keretapi Tanah Melayu | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | KTM Intercity | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Platforms |
1 side platform 1 island platform | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Available, free. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Disabled access | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 1935 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrified | 2007 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||||||||||||
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The Ipoh railway station is a Malaysian train station located at the south-western side of and named after the capital city of Ipoh, Perak. It serves as the main railway terminal for the state. It is owned by Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad, and offers KTM Intercity services, ETS services, as well as handling freight trains. Although there are 9 tracks, only four are electrified and three of the electrified tracks are used for ETS and Intercity services. While the rest (6 other tracks) are use as a freight yard.
Designed by Arthur Benison Hubback, it was first constructed and opened in 1935, making it the second concrete station to be constructed in the town. The building also houses the hotel called the Majestic Hotel. Affectionately known as the Taj Mahal of Ipoh by its locals, it closely resembles its Kuala Lumpur sister.
History
The Ipoh railway station was initially meant to be a hospital and used before the 20th century as such before being turned into a station. The original completion year of 1917 was delayed for three years due to lack of construction materials as well as high costs during World War I.
Like the Kuala Lumpur station, the Ipoh station were designed and constructed by Arthur Benison Hubback, a British architectural assistant to the Director of Public Works. Having served in India, Hubback utilised his knowledge of Anglo-Asian architecture in the region on the station's design. The "Neo-Moorish/Mughal/Indo-Saracenic/Neo-Saracenic" style was not uncommon at the time.
Many of Hubback's buildings in then Malaya followed this style and shared many similar features. The other buildings designed by him include the Kuala Lumpur Railway Station (completed 1910), the Jamek Mosque (completed 1909) and the old KL city hall building (completed 1904).
As part of KTM's double tracking and electrification project between Ipoh and Rawang, the Ipoh station was significant renovated over the course of the 2000s (decade). Prominently, the platform area was completely rebuilt and modernised to level the platforms' height with entrances to train carriages as well as accommodate the newly laid double track and overhead lines (these included replacement of the original underground tunnels between platforms and steel-and-wood pitched canopies with an overhead bridge and curving metal canopies). Although interior refurbishment on portions of the ground floor of the main building were also conducted, remaining elements of the headhouse, including the station's Majestic Hotel, were preserved. The overhaul was completed in October 2007, three months before the conclusion of railway electrification between Ipoh and Rawang.
In popular culture
The Ipoh station was used as a shooting location for the film Anna and the King, starring Jodie Foster.
External links
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Coordinates: 4°35′50″N 101°04′24″E / 4.59722°N 101.07333°E