Prime Minister Magyar Péter has announced that the Tisza government has approved one of the largest railway development programs in Hungarian history, raising hopes for long-awaited improvements to rail infrastructure across the country—including a completely new main railway station in Debrecen.
In a post on Facebook on Thursday, the prime minister said further details of the Baross Gábor Railway Development Program will be presented next week together with Transport and Investment Minister Vitézy Dávid.
Earlier this month, while presenting legislation on public transport reform in Parliament, Vitézy said the proposal is closely linked to securing European Union funding for railway development. He explained that the Baross Gábor Railway Development Plan will outline rail investments for more than the next decade, with a strong focus on improving rolling stock and passenger services.
According to the minister, the government plans to introduce a brand-new InterCity fleet on several railway lines. He noted that replacing Hungary’s outdated rolling stock would cost nearly HUF 3 trillion, while the currently available EU funding amounts to approximately HUF 700 billion.
The proposed legislation also establishes a national transport organizer responsible for planning the railway network, timetables, fare systems, and coordinating services, alongside a national rolling stock management organization that will purchase new trains using EU funding.
Vitézy emphasized that the reforms do not represent privatization or market liberalization, but rather a modernization of how the state organizes public transport services.
New Main Railway Station Planned for Debrecen
Following the prime minister’s announcement, Zsolt Tárkányi, Tisza Party MP for part of Debrecen and Parliamentary State Secretary at the Ministry of Transport and Investments, confirmed that Debrecen will also benefit from the nationwide program.
“We will build the New Main Railway Station! Details coming soon!”
Tárkányi and fellow Debrecen MP Enikő Tompa have made the city’s deteriorating main railway station one of their key priorities.
In June, Tompa highlighted what she described as the station’s dangerously poor technical condition. She pointed to a leaking pedestrian underpass, falling concrete elements, emergency structural supports, and severe traffic restrictions introduced on June 1. Freight trains have been banned from using the affected section, while passenger trains are operating with reduced loads due to structural concerns.
Tompa also noted that residents of Debrecen have been hearing promises about an intermodal transport hub since 2012 without seeing the project materialize.
Responding to those concerns, Tárkányi acknowledged that the situation is unsustainable. He explained that the structural deterioration has become so severe that locomotives can no longer stop above the underpass.
As an immediate measure, the government plans to reinforce the station’s structure, eliminate water leaks, and install elevators within the next two years.
In the longer term, plans call for the construction of a modern, 21st-century transport hub integrating the city’s bus station, expanding tram connections, and improving suburban railway services.
Tárkányi also announced that the previously closed Railway Line 106 will reopen later this year. In addition, the Józsa railway stop is set to undergo a fully accessible modernization and reconstruction. According to Tompa, the government’s response provides reassurance that the long-standing issues surrounding Debrecen’s main railway station are finally being addressed.
