Barão de Mauá Station
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Barão de Mauá Station Estação Barão de Mauá / Estação Leopoldina | |||||
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 Façade of the abandoned station in 2012 | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil | ||||
| Coordinates | 22°54′27″S 43°12′42″W / 22.90750°S 43.21167°W | ||||
| History | |||||
| Opened | 6 December 1926 | ||||
| Closed | February 2001 | ||||
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The Barão de Mauá Station (also known as the Leopoldina Station) is a former train station in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The station, named after Irineu Evangelista de Sousa, was constructed in 1926 as the Rio terminus of the Leopoldina Railway.[1] Designed by Scottish architect Robert Prentice, the building is four storeys tall and initially included a British embassy in addition to its railway platforms. The station served as a significant intercity terminus for much of its existence until the late 20th century when long-distance rail travel in Brazil effectively ceased following the privatization of railways. The station was finally closed to rail traffic in 2001 after an accident where an EMU train lost control of its brakes and collided with one of the platform pillars.[2] All rail traffic has been diverted to the Central do Brasil Station which is the terminus for SuperVia commuter rail lines to Rio de Janeiro.
Since the station's closing, there have been government proposals to reopen the station for long-distance travel, including as the terminus of a proposed high-speed rail line to São Paulo.[citation needed]