Darwin railway station is the

terminus station A train station, railway station, railroad station or depot is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track and a station building providing such ...

of the Adelaide-Darwin rail corridor in the Darwin suburb of

East Arm, Northern Territory __NOTOC__ East Arm is a suburb in the Northern Territory of Australia located in Darwin about east of Darwin City overlooking a part of Darwin Harbour known as the East Arm. Geography East Arm consists of land associated with a peninsula ex ...

. The station is from

Adelaide Parklands Terminal Adelaide Parklands Terminal, formerly known as Keswick Terminal, is the interstate passenger railway station in Adelaide, South Australia. It is the only station in the world where passengers can board trains on both north-south and east-west ...

station, from the end of the line and by road from Darwin's city centre. In front of the station building is a paved area long, but sealed

hardstanding A hardstand (also hard standing and hardstanding in British English) is a paved or hard-surfaced area on which vehicles, such as cars or aircraft, may be parked. The term may also be used informally to refer to an area of compacted hard surface suc ...

extends for a kilometre (1100 yards) to accommodate all carriages of the train on the single track. Since this area is not raised, small platforms with stairs are positioned for passengers.

History

The station opened on 4 February 2004 when ''

The Ghan ''The Ghan'' is an experiential tourism oriented passenger train service that operates between the northern and southern coasts of Australia, through the cities of Adelaide, Alice Springs and Darwin on the Adelaide–Darwin rail corridor. O ...

'' operated the first passenger service on the newly constructed line from

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

. In 2004, a small

0-4-0 Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents one of the simplest possible types, that with two axles and four coupled wheels, all of which are driven. The wheels on the earliest four-coupled locomotives were ...

steam locomotive, built in 1886 by

Baldwin Locomotive Works The Baldwin Locomotive Works (BLW) was an American manufacturer of railroad locomotives from 1825 to 1951. Originally located in Philadelphia, it moved to nearby Eddystone, Pennsylvania, in the early 20th century. The company was for decades t ...

, was put on display in the station. As the first locomotive in the Northern Territory, it was used during construction of the

Palmerston and Pine Creek Railway The North Australia Railway was a narrow gauge railway in the Northern Territory of Australia which ran from the territory capital of Darwin, once known as Palmerston, to Birdum, just south of Larrimah. Initially its name was the ''Palmerst ...

and for 63 years more on the line. It became known as ''Sandfly''. In 2008 the NT Motor Vehicle Enthusiasts Club substantially refurbished it for display, and since 2010 it has been in the former Qantas hangar in Parap alongside the club's historic trucks, traction and stationary engines and fire engines.

Services

The sole passenger services to Darwin are provided by ''

'', which operated weekly in each direction.Ghan Timetable April 2021 to December 2021
Journey Beyond The Ghan at Darwin station (across the lawns), 2005

The Ghan at Darwin station (across the lawns), 2005

References

External links

{{Journey Beyond railway stations, The Ghan=y, state=collapsed Railway stations in the Northern Territory Railway stations in Australia opened in 2004 Transport in Darwin, Northern Territory