Wynyard railway station, Sydney

Coordinates: 33°51′57″S 151°12′20″E / 33.865868°S 151.205547°E / -33.865868; 151.205547
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Wynyard
Wynyard Walk entrance in April 2017
General information
LocationYork Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Coordinates33°51′57″S 151°12′20″E / 33.865868°S 151.205547°E / -33.865868; 151.205547
Owned byTransport Asset Holding Entity
Operated bySydney Trains
Line(s)City Circle
Distance2.05 km (1.27 mi) from Central (clockwise)
Platforms4 (2 island)
Tracks4
Connections
Construction
Structure typeUnderground
Platform levels2
AccessibleYes
ArchitectJohn Bradfield (designer)[1]
Other information
StatusStaffed
WebsiteTransport for NSW
History
Opened28 February 1932
ElectrifiedYes
Passengers
2023[3]
  • 33,502,020 (year)
  • 91,786 (daily)[2] (Sydney Trains, NSW TrainLink)
Services
Preceding station Sydney Trains Following station
Town Hall
towards Emu Plains or Richmond
North Shore & Western Line Milsons Point
towards Berowra
Town Hall Inner West & Leppington Line Circular Quay
towards Macarthur or Revesby
Town Hall
towards Lidcombe or Liverpool
Bankstown Line
clockwise only
Circular Quay
towards Liverpool or Lidcombe
Town Hall Airport & South Line Circular Quay
towards Macarthur or Revesby
Town Hall
towards Hornsby
Northern Line Milsons Point
towards Gordon
Preceding station NSW TrainLink Following station
Milsons Point
towards Gosford or Wyong
Central Coast & Newcastle Line
(peak hour services)
Town Hall
towards Central
Route map
City Circle route map

Wynyard railway station (/ˈwɪnjərd/) is a heritage-listed[1] underground commuter rail station located in the north-west precinct of the Sydney central business district, in New South Wales, Australia. The station opened on 28 February 1932 to coincide with the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

History[edit]

Building Sydney Rail Network, ca. 1926, Arthur Ernest Foster
Wynyard railway station, 1940s
Former tram tunnels leading to disused platforms 1 and 2

The station opened on 28 February 1932.[4] Wynyard was originally constructed with six platforms (the existing four platforms are still numbered from 3 to 6), with platforms 1-4 located on the upper level and platforms 5 and 6 on the lower level. The original intention was that Platforms 1 and 2, located adjacent to platforms 3 and 4, would eventually serve the eastern pair of railway tracks across the Harbour Bridge for a proposed railway line to the Northern Beaches. In the interim, with construction yet to begin on the Northern Beaches line due to lack of funds, they were used as a terminus for North Shore tram services on Sydney's tram network, operating from the bridge's opening in 1932 until 1958. A feature of these lines was Australia's only underground tram terminus.[1] On 22 January 1956, the lines from platforms 5 and 6 were extended to Circular Quay as part of the City Circle.[1]

In 1999, along with Town Hall, the station received an easy access upgrade which included lifts to each island platform. The station was extensively refurbished in 2016, with Wynyard Walk, a pedestrian-only tunnel, being officially opened on 20 November 2016.

Former tram tunnels[edit]

Following the closure of the North Shore tram lines, in 1958 the tracks were lifted from platforms 1 and 2. Later, the platforms were walled off from 3 and 4 and part of the space converted into an underground car park for the Menzies Hotel.[5][1] The tunnels were accessed from Wynyard Lane where a descending ramp was cut west under Wynyard Park to the disused platforms. The Wynyard Lane Car Park was closed in October 2016 to make way for the mixed-use Wynyard Place development which would obstruct the entrance ramp to the tunnels.[6]

The remainder of the tunnels north of the car park exit were walled off as were the northern portals on the Harbour Bridge. North of the portals, two additional road lanes were built above the old tramway as part of the Cahill Expressway. The disused tunnels and ramp that formerly connected the station to the eastern tram tracks can still be seen from the pedestrian path along the east side of the bridge, mirroring those still in use to the west of the bridge.

Station configuration[edit]

Ticket barriers on the eastern side of the concourse
Station concourse

Wynyard station currently has two levels, each with two platforms. The upper level serves the North Shore line, whilst the lower level serves lines traversing the City Circle. Both lines run south under York Street from Wynyard to Town Hall. There is no connection between the rails of these two lines at Wynyard.

The passenger concourse is on an intermediate level between the upper and lower platforms. Wynyard is connected via underground passageways to several surrounding buildings and shopping arcades and is located immediately below Wynyard Park. Direct access via tunnels is possible to George, Hunter and Pitt Streets. Escalators connect the station concourse with York Street (emerging underneath Transport House) and Carrington Street (under Wynyard Park).

Refurbishment[edit]

'Interloop' sculpture 2017

Commencing in 2015, the platforms and concourse were thoroughly refurbished with new flooring and ceilings as well as an extra stairway to platforms 3 and 4 and the addition of more ticket barriers. The four wooden escalators underneath Transport House, which had been operational since the opening of the station, were replaced with modern escalators. Parts of the former escalators were repurposed into a ceiling-mounted artwork titled 'Interloop', which was installed at the York Street entrance to the station concourse.[7][8] The refurbishment was completed in 2018.[9]

Brookfield Place[edit]

Above Wynyard Station, Brookfield Properties has created a mixed-use scheme of offices, retail and leisure in one new block that rises out of the reconfigured transit hall of Wynyard Station. The design team of Make Architects and Architectus assembled four separate sites including the former Menzies Hotel, Thakral House, and the retained Shell House and Beneficial House, and merged them into one reinvigorated block, which has been named Brookfield Place Sydney – a name the developer reserves for their premium international developments.[10] The George and Carrington Street entrances to Wynyard Station have been greatly expanded to allow for greater access to the railway concourse but also to the buildings above and the new retail levels at street level and below. The development provides a new, street level pedestrian route from George Street through to Carrington Street and Wynyard Park beyond.[11]

Wynyard Walk[edit]

Wynyard Walk

The Wynyard Walk is a 180-metre-long (590 ft) pedestrian link and tunnel between Wynyard station and Barangaroo that opened in September 2016,[12] with a Clarence Street entrance that opened in December 2016. Based on a design by architecture firm Woods Bagot,[13] the project combined a new entrance, a pedestrian tunnel, a pedestrian bridge, and a new pedestrian plaza. Wynyard Walk provides direct access via tunnels to Clarence, Kent and Sussex streets.[14][15] Wynyard Walk features a huge video screen showcasing digital art.[16]

Platforms and services[edit]

Upper-level platforms 3 and 4
Lower-level platforms 5 and 6
Platform Line Stopping pattern Notes
1 Former tram platform, not in use
2 Former tram platform, not in use
3 services to Penrith, Richmond & Emu Plains 6 weekday morning peak services to Blacktown via Central
services to Epping & Hornsby via Strathfield
4 services to Lindfield, Gordon, Hornsby & Berowra 3 weekday evening peak NSW TrainLink services to Gosford
3 weekday evening peak NSW TrainLink services to Wyong[17]
services to Gordon
5 services to Homebush, Parramatta & Leppington
weekday services to Liverpool via Bankstown
6 services to Revesby & Macarthur
2 weekday evening services to Campbelltown
services to Lidcombe via Bankstown
weekend services to Liverpool via Bankstown

Transport links[edit]

Wynyard station is served by bus routes operated by Busways, CDC NSW, Transdev and Transit Systems, under contract to Transport for NSW.

Stand A, Carrington St:

Stand B, Carrington St:

  • B1: to Mona Vale

Stand C, Carrington St

  • 151: to Mona Vale via Manly (late night service)
  • 180: to Collaroy Plateau
  • 180X: to Collaroy Plateau Express
  • 183X: PM peak service to North Narrabeen
  • 185X: PM peak service to Mona Vale via Warriewood Valley
  • 188: to Avalon (late night service)
  • 188X: PM peak service to North Avalon
  • 189X: PM peak service to Avalon
  • 190X: to Palm Beach Express

Stand D, Carrington St:

  • 166X: PM peak service to Allambie Heights
  • 176X: PM peak service to Dee Why via North Curl Curl
  • 177X: PM peak service to Dee Why via Wingala
  • 178: to Cromer Heights
  • 178X: PM peak service to Cromer Heights
  • 179X: PM peak service to Wheeler Heights

Stand H, York Street:

Stand J, York St:

  • 251: PM peak service to Cope St, Lane Cove West via Freeway
  • 253: PM peak service to Riverview
  • 293: PM peak service to Busaco Rd, Marsfield via Lane Cove Tunnel & Epping Rd
  • 297: PM peak service to Colvin Crescent, Denistone East via Lane Cove Tunnel & North Ryde
  • 607X, 610, 610X, 613X, 614X, 615X, 616X, 617X & 618X: QVB

Stand K, York St:

  • 594: QVB

Stand L, York St:

  • L70, 270, 271, 273, 274: QVB

Stand Q, Clarence St:

Stand R, Clarence St:

Stand S, Clarence St:

Stand T, Clarence St:

  • 100: to Taronga Zoo
  • 168X: PM peak service to Warringah Mall via North Balgowlah
  • 169: to Manly via Wakehurst Parkway, Beacon Hill, Dee Why & Pittwater Road
  • 169X: PM peak service to Manly via Wakehurst Parkway, Beacon Hill, Dee Why & Pittwater Road
  • 171X: PM peak service to Manly via Clontarf & South Balgowlah
  • 175X: PM peak service to Brookvale

Stand U, Jamison St

  • 165X: PM peak service to South Curl Curl

Trackplan[edit]

Track layout

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Wynyard Railway Station". New South Wales State Heritage Register. Department of Planning & Environment. Text is licensed by State of New South Wales (Department of Planning and Environment) under CC-BY 4.0 licence.
  2. ^ This figure is the number of entries and exits of a year combined averaged to a day.
  3. ^ "Train Station Monthly Usage". Open Data. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  4. ^ Wynyard Station NSWrail.net
  5. ^ Saulwick, Jacob (2 July 2011). "Tunnel vision: old tram links could free city streets". Sydney Morning Herald. Nine Entertainment Co. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  6. ^ "Community Update - September 2016, Wynyard Place Project" (PDF). Building Wynyard Place. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  7. ^ Wong, Luke (7 December 2017). "Wynyard Railway Station escalator sculpture Interloop preserves heritage as time moves on". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 7 December 2017.
  8. ^ "Interloop". Chris Fox. Archived from the original on 5 January 2019. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
  9. ^ "Wynyard Station Upgrade". 29 May 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
  10. ^ Brookfield Place Sydney Archived 2 August 2021 at the Wayback Machine Brookfield Properties
  11. ^ A Place Like no Other Brookfield Properties
  12. ^ "Wynyard Walk is the ultimate shortcut to Barangaroo" (Press release). Barangaroo Delivery Authority. 20 September 2016. Archived from the original on 16 November 2016. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
  13. ^ "Woods Bagot made architects for 'revolutionary' Wynyard Walk, Sydney". Architecture & Design. Infolink. 5 November 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  14. ^ "Wynyard Walk". Barangaroo Delivery Authority. 20 September 2016. Archived from the original on 23 September 2016. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  15. ^ Wynyard Walk Transport for NSW
  16. ^ Wynscreen
  17. ^ "Central Coast & Newcastle line timetable". Transport for NSW.

External links[edit]

Media related to Wynyard railway station at Wikimedia Commons