Dobiegniew 2024-10-30

Dobiegniew Railway Station.

Geographic coordinates: 52.968N 15.746E. Elevation 67 m (219.82 ft). Address Dobiegniew Railway Station ul. Obrońców Pokoju 9, 66-520 Dobiegniew.

The town of Dobiegniew.

The town of Dobiegniew is located in the Lubuskie Province, in the Strzelecko-Drezdenko County, in the Dobiegniew Commune. Geographically, it is the Dobiegniew Lakeland and the town is located on Lake Wielgie. The Mierzęcka Struga River flows through the town. It is also the edge of the Drawsko Forest.

Dobiegniew was founded in the 12th century as a fishing settlement and belonged to Wielkopolska. The name Dobiegniew first appeared in 1280, in a Latin document issued in Poznań, signed by the King of Poland Przemysł II. At the end of the 13th century, these areas were seized by Brandenburg, i.e. the later Germans. City rights were granted to the settlement in 1298. During World War II, the Germans established the largest prisoner of war camp in Dobiegniew. Dobiegniew returned to Poland in 1945, as a result of the end of World War II started by Germans and Muscovites. The area of ​​the city is 5.69 km2. The population is 3,071 inhabitants in 2019. From Dobiegniew to: Krzyż Wielkopolski is 24 km. Gorzów Wielkopolski is 50 km. Piła is 76 km. Szczecin is 107 km. Poznań is 112 km. Warsaw is 401 km. In Dobiegniew the roads intersect; National Road No. 22 and Provincial Road No. 160.

Railway in the city of Dobiegniew.

The city of Dobiegniew is crossed by LK No. 351 Poznań Główny – Szczecin Główny. The station in Dobiegniew was opened in 1848, on the new LK Stargard – Dobiegniew – Krzyż – Poznań. At that time, the station had the Germanic name Woldenberg. Other railway lines never branched off from Dobiegniew station, so it was not a junction station.

The railway line No. 351 Poznań Główny – Szczecin Główny is a mostly double-track line, of national importance, electrified with 3 kV DC. The line runs from the south-east to the north-west. The length of the line is 213,500 km. Maximum speed 160 km/h. The electrification of LK No. 351 took place in stages; On 27 June 1975, Poznań Główny – Rokietnica. On September 8, 1977, Rokietnica – Krzyż. On June 21, 1978, Krzyż – Choszczno. On December 15, 1978, Choszczno – Szczecin.

The station in Dobiegniew is a typical Prussian building. The building is two-storey, with a basement and a gable roof with a small slope. There are small ornaments on the elevation. The last renovation of the building was done in 2013. The building was painted straw with orange additions from the outside. The bottom of the building was painted burgundy. The interior includes ticket offices (closed in June 2012), a waiting room and toilets (closed). The station square is paved with basalt blocks. There is a car park and bus stops here.

At Dobiegniew station there is a fan-shaped locomotive shed that is no longer used. The facility is located near a rail-road crossing, Gorzowska Street DK No. 22. The building was built of red brick, had two stations and the possibility of building more stations. Currently (2024) the building requires renovation or demolition. There was also a water tower, which was dismantled. The station had two platforms and three platform edges, made of concrete slabs.

The renovation of Dobiegniew station was carried out in the period 2021-2024, during the renovation of LK No. 351. The track system and platforms were completely rebuilt. Only three through tracks were left at the station, including one at the loading ramp. Previously, there were four tracks and a siding to the elevator. The siding to the elevator was dismantled. New electric traction and a new computerized rail traffic control system were installed. The old signal box with “Dg” was located on the Szczecin side, it was closed and liquidated in 2023. The SKP station was located on the Krzyż side, it was closed and liquidated in 2023. The rail-road crossings were left on one level; Mickiewicza Street and Gorzowska Street (DK No. 22), but they are automatically controlled.

Two new single-edge platforms were built a little further on, towards Stargard. The length of the platforms is 270 m. The platforms were equipped with roofing, benches, rest areas, waste bins, information display cases, audio system, lighting, and monitoring. The surface at the platform edge was covered with prefabricated grey slabs, with a yellow warning line and buttons, measuring 1 m x 2 m. The rest was covered with grey concrete tiles. An underpass for passengers was built, which, thanks to ramps, is also accessible to wheelchair users and families with children in strollers. This tunnel also connected both sides of the city. A front-side loading ramp and a storage yard were left at the Dobiegniew station. The track was fenced off for the safety of residents.

Over the past 10 years, up to 200 passengers used the Dobiegniew station daily. The collapse occurred only in 2020, due to the Chinese virus pandemic. The station is served by regional PolRegio trains and InterCity (TLK) trains. On October 29, 2024, 26 trains departed from Dobiegniew station to: Hrubieszów Miasto, Kraków Główny, Łódź Kaliska, Poznań Główny, Przemyśl Główny, Suwałki, Szczecin Główny, Świnoujście, Świnoujście Port, Warszawa Wschodnia.

Written by Karol Placha Hetman