Due to financial issues the building planned was never built, and when the railway line was opened, Riihimäki station only had a warehouse, a water tower, a wooden shed and a platform shelter.

The construction of the railway line from Riihimäki to Saint Petersburg began 1867 and was completed in 1870.

[3] The current functionalist style station building, designed by architect Thure Hellström, was completed in 1935.

The new station building was originally supposed to be placed in the middle of the railyard, between the train tracks.

[3] The role of Riihimäki station as a major junction station somewhat decreased in September 2006, when the Kerava–Lahti line was opened and the long-distance trains via Lahti to eastern Finland and Russia were moved to run via the new line.

[10] Helsinki commuter rail: Long-distance: There are eleven tracks at the Riihimäki railway station of which six (1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11) have platforms for passenger trains.