The station opened on 22 April 1884 by the Thessaly Railways. The original station building was designed by the ItalianEvaristo de Chirico,. The line was authorise by the Greek government under the law AMH’/22.6.1882. soon after the liberation of Central Greece from the Ottomans. In 1955 Thessaly Railways was absorbed into Hellenic State Railways. In 1960 the line from Larissa to Volos was converted to standard gauge and connected though Larissa to the mainline from Athens to Thessaloniki, allowing through services to Volos from Athens and Thessaloniki. In 1970 OSE became the legal successor to the SEK. In 2011 it was reported that the Greek government was looking at divestiture of certain high profile assets of OSE, namely a number of the larger terminal stations, most notably Athens, Piraeus, Thessaloniki, Volos and also Larissa. In January 2017, heavy snowfall forced many trains services to be suspended. In 2018 a new coffee shop opened within the station. In 2019 the station received negative publicity after it was reported the high levels of rubbish left in and round the station. The issue stemmed for one of finally responsibility for cleaning and maintaining the station forcourt. In 2005 part of station building was given over to a museum. Housed in auxiliary buildings of the main station building, it’s houses railway Paraphernalia from Thessaly Railways and the 1930’s and is run by Association of Friends of the Larissa Railway.
Facilities
The station has waiting rooms and staffed ticket office within an 1960s era building. The station has a buffet, and new coffee shop. There is a taxi rank and Parking in the forecourt. In June 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic the station was on of the first in Greece to Utilise thermal cameras in order to measure the temperature of staff and passengers, as an additional precautionary measure against the coronavirus.
Services
The station is served by regional stopping services to Thessaloniki, Kalambaka, Palaiofarsalos and Volos. It is also served by InterCity trains between Athens and Thessaloniki. Since 2008, it has served as the terminaus for line 1 of Proastiakos services to Thessaloniki. The station is served by local and regional buses. KTEL operates Lines 3, 11 & 14 while OSE operates Lines 573/4, 575/6 & 577/0. All services are accessible from the forecourt.
Accidents and incidents
2008 accident
On 08 March 2008, an Alexandroupolis-bound InterCity train derailed outside the station, with Reuters reporting no deaths and a total of 28 people injured in the incident. The Jerusalem Post reporting 20 adults and 3 children were taken to a nearby hospital Initial reports indicated human error, when the station master failed to change the points after a previous train had passed through the station, causing five carriages from the passenger train to jump the tracks. The two drivers of the derailed train were taken in for questioning, the station master fled the scene and is now being sought by authorities.
2018 accident
On 03 August 2018, a Stylida-bound train derailed at the station. No deaths and only 2 injuries resulted. The train left the tracks and collided with a wall of a building as it entered Larissa station. Initial reports indicate an unknown person in the control room had switched the points, sending the train straight into the building. This again raised the issue of rail safety in Greece.
2019 accident
On 26 April 2019 two carriages on an Intercity service between Thessaloniki and Athens derailed outside Larissa, No injuries were reported among the passengers.
