Birkirkara remains – The Malta Railway

Birkirkara to Balzan

Fitting home for a musum

Birkirkara station was sited just to the south of the town, close to the old parish church, its tower having a commanding presence over the platforms. Here, the line intersected Strada Fleur de Lys at a sharp angle, with two bends that limited visibility, and a wide crossing. As well as being a danger, the acute angle was unkind to wooden cartwheels

The original Birkirkara station before rebuilding in 1910. The main station building is the low white block on the right, the water tower just visible on the far right, leant against by the waistcoated gentleman. The line of trees on the left survived the rebuilding.

Garden archaeology

capacity. After commodious new single-storey station building was finished west of the original, approached axially along modern Kulleggiata, the old building and water tank were demolished and their sites subsumed into more platform extensions. Surplus land was sold for development.

Birkirkara in its prime in 1912, it’s garden becoming established and an intensive timetable of services in operation. Here, one of the original Manning Wardle locomotives with a train of only four carriages has probably arrived with an off-peak service from Museum. It could, alternatively, be operating the Valletta-Birkirkara shuttle service that ran through most of the day. The Magnolia Grandiflora on the right may pre-date the reconstruction of the station. (National Archives of Malta)

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Msida remains

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Balzan remains