Marseille-Saint-Charles Railway Station, Early Sunday Morning, France

Marseille-Saint-Charles (French: Gare de Marseille-Saint-Charles; Occitan: Estacion de Marselha-Santa Carles) is the main railway station and intercity bus station of Marseille, France. It is the southern terminus of the Paris–Marseille railway and the western terminus of the Marseille–Ventimiglia railway.

It opened on 8 January 1848, having been built for the Chemins de fer de Paris à Lyon et à la Méditerranée (PLM) on the land of the former Saint Charles Cemetery. The station is perched on top of a small hill and is linked to the city centre by a monumental set of stairs. Since 2001, the TGV has dramatically reduced the travel time between Marseille and Northern France; traffic has increased from 7.1 million annual passengers in 2000 to 16.5 million in 2017. This makes the station the eleventh busiest in France.

History
Construction of the Saint-Charles Grand Staircase

Saint-Charles grand staircase towards the city centre
Marseille-Saint-Charles was once a key stage on the sea voyage to Africa, the Middle East, and the Far East, before the popularisation of flying. The station, originally isolated from the city, was equipped with a grand staircase, envisioned by Eugène Senès. His proposal was approved by the municipality on 3 July 1911, but delayed by World War I. Construction work started on 17 July 1923; the grand staircase was opened on 22 December 1925, before being formally inaugurated by President Gaston Doumergue on 24 April 1927. It is bordered by statues inspired by all the distant locations to which people sailed from Marseille's port.