Pracchia
The History of Pracchia Station
Pracchia Station is a railway station located on the Porrettana Railway, built to serve the fraction of Pracchia in the municipality of Pistoia. This station played a fundamental role in the development of commercial activities in the Montagna Pistoiese, such as ice factories, pastoralism, and tourism.
Inauguration and Importance of the Station
Pracchia Station was inaugurated on November 21, 1863, and was reached by Vittorio Emanuele II, along with the Minister of Public Works Stefano Jacini and the designer of the line. Thanks to its strategic position, the station became the most important on the new railway. In fact, all locomotives that climbed the difficult slopes of the Pistoian side were based at this station.
Pracchia Station had 70 railway workers permanently employed on the site and in 1901, it surpassed the ticket sales revenues of Porretta Terme station. Also in 1901, the station experimented with the Saccardo fan, designed by the engineer of the same name, to aerate the Apennine Tunnel, solving the problem of smoke evacuation produced by steam locomotives.
Conversion to Electric Traction
In 1927, Pracchia Station was equipped with an electrical substation and on May 24 of the same year, the alternating current three-phase electric traction was put into service. In 1935, the line was converted to direct current.
Station Facilities and Installations
Pracchia Station is a railway station located at the highest point above sea level of the railway line. In 1992, the station was totally unmanned and the regional train traffic is remotely controlled.
Pracchia Station was of fundamental importance for the development of commercial activities in the Montagna Pistoiese. Today, the station represents a passage for travelers on the Porrettana Railway and gives them the opportunity to admire the history and importance of this railway facility.
