East Hills railway line

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East Hills railway line
East Hills Railway Bridge.JPG
Rail bridge over the Georges River at East Hills
Technical
Track gauge 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)
Route map

Contents

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from Airport line
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junction Illawarra line
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Turrella
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Bardwell Park
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Bexley North
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Kingsgrove
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Beverly Hills
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Narwee
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Riverwood
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Padstow
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Revesby
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Panania
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East Hills
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Holsworthy
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junction Main South Line

The East Hills railway line serves the southern and south-western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. The line opened to East Hills in 1931 and was extended to connect to the Main South Line in 1987. Most services along the line form part of the Airport & South Line operated by Sydney Trains.

Alignment

The East Hills line branches from the Illawarra Line at Wolli Creek Junction, between Tempe and Arncliffe railway stations. From Wolli Creek, the line heads west towards East Hills, where the alignment is within 2 km of the since-constructed M5 South Western Motorway. It then turns south-west through the new suburbs of Voyager Point and Wattle Grove to meet the Main South line at Glenfield Junction. The line is four tracks between Wolli Creek junction and Revesby station, then two tracks to Glenfield junction. The bridge over the Georges River at East Hills, opened in 1987, is the only significant engineering structure on the line.

History

Map of the East Hills Line from 1939 showing the limit of electrification at Kingsgrove, and the former station names Dumbleton and Herne Bay. East Hills railway map.jpg
Map of the East Hills Line from 1939 showing the limit of electrification at Kingsgrove, and the former station names Dumbleton and Herne Bay.

Proposals for a line to East Hills were first raised after World War 1 as an extension of the existing line at Bankstown. In 1923, the Railway Department put forward a proposal for a railway from Tempe to Salt Pan Creek to serve the growing town of Dumbleton (later known as Beverly Hills). Residents west of Salt Pan Creek petitioned the government to extend the line to East Hills.[ citation needed ]

The New South Wales Public Works Committee approved of construction of a railway from Tempe to East Hills in August 1924 and the bill for construction of the line passed both Houses of the state Parliament in late 1924. [1] A ceremony at Padstow Park commemorating the turning of the first sod by the then-Premier of New South Wales Jack Lang was held in September 1927. [2] [3] [4]

The initial line was to be double track between Tempe and Kingsgrove and single track beyond, although earthworks were to allow future easy duplication of the entire route. Electrification was also to end at Kingsgrove. Construction began in 1927 with the employment of 400 workers, and most of the earthworks were completed in by 1930. [5] [6] Station names were announced in November 1929. They were largely the same as those used today with the exception of Dumbleton (present-day Beverly Hills) and Herne Bay (present-day Riverwood). [7]

The first section to Kingsgrove opened on 21 September 1931 as an electrified double track line from Wolli Creek Junction on the Illawarra Line to Kingsgrove.[ citation needed ]

The second section, a single-track non-electrified extension to East Hills, was opened on 19 December 1931 by the then-Minister for Local Government James McGirr in a ceremony at East Hills. [8] [9] Points to reverse trains were provided at Kingsgrove, and a passing loop was provided at Herne Bay. Services on this section were by CPH railmotor, supplemented by through steam trains from Central in peak hours. [10] Some electric services from Kingsgrove operated through to St James station (the City Circle was not complete at that time), however most terminated at Tempe, connecting with Illawarra line services to and from the city. Complete through service commenced in 1937. The single line between Kingsgrove and East Hills was opened for electric services on 17 December 1939. [11]

The line was duplicated between Kingsgrove and Riverwood in 1948, with points for terminating trains provided at both stations, and a passing loop at Revesby was opened in 1956. Services generally ran all stations from East Hills via Tempe and Sydenham, to the City Circle. Occasional services terminated at Riverwood, Kingsgrove and Padstow. Most trains stopped at Erskineville and St Peters, now only served by the Bankstown line.

In 1985, the line was duplicated through to East Hills and on 21 December 1987 extended to Glenfield to connect with the Main South Line, allowing through services to and from Campbelltown. A new station was provided at Holsworthy, and East Hills station was rebuilt with the addition of a third platform. When services commenced on 21 December 1987, [12] there were only limited services from Campbelltown via East Hills during peak hours only; however, in 1988 an all day half-hourly service was provided. Local (all stations) services generally ran every 15 minutes from East Hills. [13]

In conjunction with the construction of the Airport Line, the section of the East Hills Line between Wolli Creek Junction and Kingsgrove was quadruplicated. Once this was opened, the running patterns of the trains on the lines changed. The "flying junctions" interchange near Central Station was altered to give the Airport Line its own platforms (21 & 23) at Central. Local (all stations) trains generally were timetabled to run from East Hills]l via the airport, peak hour express trains from Campbelltown run along the original route via Sydenham, taking the express tracks between Kingsgrove and Wolli Creek Junction.

The line as a whole suffered a substantial loss in patronage when the M5 East Tunnel opened in 2002. The tunnel joined the Eastern Distributor and M5 South Western Motorway, shortening road travel times between the city and the south west. The line was estimated to have lost 384,450 commuters over 12 months after the tunnel opened. [14] Since that time, however, the line appears to have gained commuters again, with a reported 3.5% increase in patronage up to early 2006. [15]

An additional platform and turn-back track was completed at Revesby as part of the Rail Clearways Program. From October 2009 it replaced East Hills as the primary turn-back point for local all-stations services on the line. [16]

A second Rail Clearways project involved quadruplicating the section of track between Kingsgrove and Revesby. This enables express services between the Campbelltown area and the city to operate separately from local services between Revesby and the city. [17] The new tracks opened on 15 April 2013. [18] Regional trains heading southwest to Canberra and Melbourne from Sydney Central began to use the East Hills Line to travel through metropolitan Sydney, instead of the Main Southern railway line through Strathfield railway station. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revesby railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Revesby railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Revesby. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Hills railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

East Hills railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of East Hills. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airport & South Line</span> Rail service in Sydney, New South Wales

The Airport & South Line is a suburban commuter rail line in Sydney, Australia. It connects the Sydney central business district with the southwestern suburbs via Sydney Airport. The line is part of the Sydney Trains network. The line began operating on 26 November 2017, when the T2 Airport, Inner West & South Line was split in two. Sydney Trains' predecessor CityRail operated the Airport & East Hills Line over an identical route between 2000 and 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail Clearways Program</span> Australian railway infrastructure project

The Rail Clearways Programme was conceived in 2004 with the aim of easing congestion of Sydney's suburban railway network, by reducing the amount of infrastructure shared by multiple services. The disparate projects at pinch points throughout the network were designed to increase passenger capacity and improve reliability. All projects were delivered by the Transport Construction Authority until it was subsumed in November 2011 by Transport for New South Wales. A new timetable was introduced in October 2013 that realised the benefit of many of the projects, and by January 2014—the programme was complete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panania railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Panania railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Panania. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenfield railway station, Sydney</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Glenfield railway station is a junction station serving the Sydney suburb of Glenfield in Australia. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South, T2 Inner West & Leppington and T5 Cumberland line services, and by limited NSW TrainLink Southern Highlands Line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bexley North railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Bexley North railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Bexley North. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airport Link, Sydney</span> Railway line in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

The Airport Link is Sydney's inner-southern railway line connecting Sydney Airport to the Central Business District and the south-western suburbs of Sydney. With the exception of Wolli Creek, the Airport Line stations are operated by a private company, the Airport Link Company, as part of a public private partnership. The contract allows the company to charge a surcharge on top of the normal fare. The line is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Padstow railway station, Sydney</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Padstow railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Padstow. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cumberland Line</span> Rail service in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

The Cumberland Line is a commuter rail line operated by Sydney Trains in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It connects Schofields and Leppington stations in the western suburbs. Limited services extend from Schofields to Richmond. The line opened in 1996, following the construction of a 'Y-link' track between Harris Park and Merrylands stations. The intention of this link was to allow direct services to operate from the south west suburbs to Parramatta and Blacktown without requiring a change of trains at Granville. The line takes its name from the Cumberland Plain on which much of Western Sydney was built.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingsgrove railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Kingsgrove railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Kingsgrove. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bardwell Park railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Bardwell Park railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Bardwell Park. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hurstville railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Hurstville railway station is located on the Illawarra line, serving the Sydney suburb of Hurstville. It is served by Sydney Trains T4 line services and NSW TrainLink South Coast line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riverwood railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Riverwood railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Riverwood. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Hills, New South Wales</span> Suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

East Hills, a suburb of local government area City of Canterbury-Bankstown, is located 26 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and is a part of the South-western Sydney region, near larger areas like Liverpool, Revesby, and Bankstown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Narwee railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Narwee railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Narwee. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beverly Hills railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Beverly Hills railway station is a heritage-listed former railway bridge and now railway station located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Beverly Hills in the Georges River Council local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The station is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services. The station was designed and built by the NSW Government Railways. It is also known as the Beverly Hills Railway Station group and Dumbleton Railway Station. The property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Turrella railway station</span> Railway station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Turrella railway station is located on the East Hills line, serving the Sydney suburb of Turrella. It is served by Sydney Trains T8 Airport & South line services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Railways in Sydney</span>

Sydney, the largest city in Australia, has an extensive network of passenger and freight railways. The passenger system includes an extensive suburban railway network, operated by Sydney Trains, a metro network and a light rail network. A dedicated freight network also exists. Future expansion of the light rail network includes the Parramatta Light Rail. Existing light rail services are the Inner West Light Rail and the CBD & South East Light Rail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South West Rail Link</span> Railway line in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

The South West Rail Link is a railway line serving the developing suburbs of south-western Sydney, Australia between Glenfield and Leppington. Services form part of the Sydney Trains commuter rail network. It opened on 8 February 2015.

References

  1. "Tempe to East Hills. Railway recommended". The Sydney Morning Herald. 7 August 1924. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  2. "Tempe to East Hills railway". The Sydney Morning Herald. 27 August 1927. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
  3. "Tempe–East Hills railway". The Sydney Morning Herald. 5 September 1927. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
  4. "New Railway. Tempe–East Hills". The Sydney Morning Herald. 3 September 1927. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  5. Oakes, J. Salt Pan via Dumbleton. The Story of the East Hills Line. Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, September 2001, Vol 52, no 767.
  6. "Construction of new suburban line". Northern Standard. 17 April 1928. Retrieved 6 November 2011.
  7. "Tempe-East Hills Line. Railway stations named". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 November 1929. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  8. "New railway. Tempe to East Hills". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 December 1931. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  9. "Kingsgrove-East Hills. Railway officially opened". The Sydney Morning Herald. 21 December 1931. Retrieved 4 November 2011.
  10. Salt Pan via Dumbleton – The Story of the East Hills Line Oakes, John Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, September 2001 pp. 323–346
  11. Mok, Danny "FordGhia's Railway & Transport in Australia Page: East Hills Line Information & Photos" . Retrieved 3 February 2003.
  12. Bozier, Rolfe, "New South Wales Railways: East Hills Line: History" . Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  13. "NSW Rail Historical Timetables: Pre CityRail" . Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  14. Kerr, Joseph, "Motorway takes toll on rail trips", Sydney Morning Herald , 2 April 2003. Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  15. Pearlman, Jonothan, "Passengers crowd onto fewer trains", Sydney Morning Herald , 3 March 2006. Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  16. Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation, "Revesby Turnback: Project Profile". Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  17. Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation, "Kingsgrove to Revesby Quadruplication: Project Profile". Retrieved 30 December 2006.
  18. "Fixing the Trains: Better reliability, more trains for South West Sydney". Transport for NSW. 15 April 2013. Retrieved 18 April 2013.
  19. Goulburn Post, "Times are a changing", 2013-05-24