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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

L'Estaque Train Station, located in the 16th arrondissement of Marseille, is an emblematic monument to the French railway heritage. Built between 1848 and 1851 by the Compagnie PLM on the Paris-Lyon-Marseille line, it was originally dedicated to the transport of goods (briqueteries, cement plants, local chemical plants) before becoming a passenger station. Its architecture combines a main brick building from the mid-19th century with Art Deco metal shelters added in the 1920s, reflecting extensions related to the economic and demographic boom of the neighborhood.

The district of L'Estaque, once a village of fishermen and tilers, underwent a radical transformation with the arrival of the railway. The station became a strategic hub for local industries and nascent seaside tourism, serving as a junction for three major lines: the Paris-Marseille line, the Côte Bleue line (Miramas-L'Estaque, opened in 1915), and the branch line to the Joliette maritime station. The latter, active until the 1960s, linked travellers to boats for North Africa and the Middle East, illustrating Marseille's key role as a Mediterranean gateway.

Ranked a historic monument in 2012, the station protects its facades, its underground passage with white ceramics and Art Nouveau ironwork, as well as its ironwork shelters. The outbound routes, formerly dedicated to goods, are now underused since the closure of the factories. Since 2016, restoration campaigns have aimed to preserve its heritage (kiosk, waiting room, marquise) and reinvent its uses, as evidenced by the 2023 call for projects to establish non-rail activities (commerce, digital services).

The station also inspires culture: the poet René Char devotes a text to him in Les Neighborhoods de Van Gogh (1985), evoking his dreamlike atmosphere. A symbol of industrialisation and artistic modernity, it remains a living place, served by TER Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azurs and integrated into the Marseille bus network (RTM).

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