Coa halt

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Coa halt

Apeadeiro de Coa
Coa halt in 2002
General information
Other namesCôa halt
LocationVila Nova de Foz Côa
Portugal
Coordinates41°5′1.68″N 7°6′19.29″W / 41.0838000°N 7.1053583°W / 41.0838000; -7.1053583
Elevation140m
Line(s)Douro line (1887-1988)
Connections
History
Opened5 May 1887 (1887-05-05)
Closed2 October 1988
Location
Coa halt is located in Portugal
Coa halt
Coa halt
Location within Portugal

The Coa halt (name previously spelled as Côa, changed after the halt's closure),[1] is a closed interface of the Douro line, which used to serve the town of Vila Nova de Foz Côa, in the Guarda District, in Portugal. The halt started operating on 5 May 1887,[2] and was closed in 2 October 1988.[3]

Description[edit]

General view of the station and access road

Location and access[edit]

This station is located in the municipality of Vila Nova de Foz Côa, about 3.5 km from the town center, via the Coa road.[4]

Physical characterization[edit]

The passenger building is located on the west side of the track (right-hand side of the uphill direction, towards Barca d'Alva). This and the other remaining infrastructures are abandoned and in a poor state of repair with the roof of the halt having collapsed likely in the last years of the 1990s.[5]

History[edit]

19th century[edit]

The section between the stations of Pocinho and Côa was opened for operation on 5 May 1887,[2] and the next section, to Barca d'Alva, was inaugurated on 9 December 1887.[6][7]

20th century[edit]

In 1901, a technical brigade was studying a link between this station and Estrada Real No. 34[8] (current EN222). However, in 1932 it still had no road access.[9]

In 1939, the Portuguese Railway Company carried out repair work on the Côa station building.[10]

Connections to other lines[edit]

In 1897, a bill was presented authorizing the government to call for tenders for several railway lines and branches, including a link between the Douro and Beira Alta lines, following the valleys of the Távora and Coa rivers.[11]

Coa halt, seen from the Douro River, in 2016

In the General Railway Network Plan, published by Decree No. 18:190, of 28 March 1930, one of the projects introduced was the Côa line, on a narrow gauge track, which was to start at Pocinho, where it would connect to the Sabor line, and end at Idanha-a-Nova, where it would be continued by the Sertã line, as far as Nazaré.[12] This Côa Line was supposed to pass through Pinhel, Guarda, Sabugal and Penamacor.[12]

In 1950, it was also planned to build a line between Côa and Vila Franca das Naves (on the Beira Alta line), although this route was considered difficult to build, so the journalist José da Guerra Maio suggested that the branch line should end at Vilar Formoso, since the Ribacoa plateau could be used, which had easier terrain.[13]

This branch line between Côa (Douro line) and the Beira Alta line would provide an alternative rail link to the Maria Pia Bridge, on the Linha do Norte, and to the Barca d'Alva–La Fuente de San Esteban railway line.[14] In fact, the latter was already in decline, depriving Porto of a direct connection to Salamanca, which could be restored via the other international line, to Vilar Formoso, if the Côa line was built.[14]

Closure[edit]

Coa halt seen from the Douro River in 2023

In 1985, Côa already had the category of halt, having been downgraded previously. In 1988, the section between Pocinho and Barca d'Alva was closed, including this interface.[3]

See also[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

  • CAPELO, Rui; MONTEIRO, Augusto; NUNES, João; RODRIGUES, António; TORGAL, Luís; VITORINO, Francisco (1994). História de Portugal em Datas. Círculo de Leitores, Lda. e Autores. p. 480. ISBN 972-42-1004-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  • MARTINS, João, BRION, Madalena, SOUSA, Miguel; et al. (1996). O Caminho de Ferro Revisitado: O Caminho de Ferro em Portugal de 1856 a 1996. Lisboa: Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses. p. 446.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  • REIS, Francisco; GOMES, Rosa; GOMES, Gilberto; et al. (2006). Os Caminhos de Ferro Portugueses 1856-2006. Lisboa: CP-Comboios de Portugal e Público-Comunicação Social S. A. p. 238. ISBN 989-619-078-X.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Castanheira de Pêra e outros topónimos depois do Acordo Ortográfico [Acordo ortográfico]". FLiP. 24 June 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Troços de linhas férreas portuguesas abertas à exploração desde 1856, e a sua extensão" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 69, no. 1652. 16 October 1956. pp. 528–530. Retrieved 24 May 2013 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  3. ^ a b REIS et al, 2006:150
  4. ^ OpenStreetMaps / GraphHopper. "Cálculo de distância pedonal (41.0832;-7.1054 → 41.0831;-7.1353)". Retrieved 2023-01-13.: 3420 m: desnível acumulado de +313−43 m
  5. ^ "www.amdourosuperior.pt/omnidouro/rota_omnidouro.asp?ID_DB=715". Archived from the original on 2011-01-21. Retrieved 2009-01-16.
  6. ^ MARTINS et al, 1996:12
  7. ^ CAPELO et al, 1994:228
  8. ^ MIRANDA, António Augusto Pereira de (16 April 1903). "Parte Official" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 16, no. 368. pp. 119–130. Retrieved 6 March 2012 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  9. ^ ALCOBAÇA, Visconde de (1 December 1932). "Estradas Afluentes à Linha do Douro: Troço da Régua a Barca D'Alva" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 45, no. 1079. pp. 559–561. Retrieved 6 March 2012 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  10. ^ "O que se fez em Caminhos de Ferro em 1938-39" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 52, no. 1266. 16 September 1940. pp. 638–639. Retrieved 19 January 2020 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  11. ^ "Há Quarenta Anos" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 49, no. 1190. 16 July 1937. pp. 367–368. Retrieved 29 July 2015 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  12. ^ a b PORTUGAL. Decreto n.º 18:190, de 28 de Março de 1930. Ministério do Comércio e Comunicações - Direcção Geral de Caminhos de Ferro - Divisão Central e de Estudos - Secção de Expediente, Publicado na Série I do Diário do Governo n.º 83, de 10 de Abril de 1930.
  13. ^ MAIO, Guerra (16 March 1950). "A infeliz linha do Douro" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 63, no. 1494. pp. 17–20. Retrieved 6 March 2012 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.
  14. ^ a b MAIO, José da Guerra (1 January 1956). "Reparos sobre turismo em Portugal" (PDF). Gazeta dos Caminhos de Ferro. Vol. Ano 68, no. 1633. pp. 41–43. Retrieved 19 January 2020 – via Hemeroteca Digital de Lisboa.