The North Shore & Western Line (numbered T1, coloured orange) is a
commuter rail
Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...
line operated by
Sydney Trains
Sydney Trains is the operator of the suburban passenger rail network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The network is a hybrid urban- suburban rail system with a central underground core that covers over of track and 170 ...
in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
,
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It serves the
North Shore, parts of the
Inner West
The Inner West of Sydney is an area directly west of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs that make up the Inner West are predominantly located along the southern shore of Port Jackson (Parramatta River) ...
and
Western Suburbs.
It was previously the North Shore, Northern & Western Line (also numbered T1) until April 2019, when the
T9 Northern Line was spun off from the original T1 line.
History
Following victory in the
2011 New South Wales election, the O'Farrell Government embarked on reform of transport in New South Wales. In November 2011,
Transport for NSW
Transport for NSW, sometimes abbreviated to TfNSW, and pronounced as Transport for New South Wales, is an agency of the New South Wales Government established on 1 November 2011, and is the leading transport and roads agency in New South Wales, ...
was created to improve planning and coordination of transport projects and services. The organisation developed a new rail timetable and branding, which was put into effect on 20 October 2013. This saw the merger of the North Shore Line and Western Line () with the
Northern Line
The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two ...
() to form the North Shore, Northern & Western Line. A new numbering system was also introduced and the line was given the number T1.
The North Shore, Northern & Western Line formerly ran along the Epping to Chatswood line until it closed in September 2018 to be converted to metro standards as part of the
Sydney Metro Northwest
Sydney Metro Northwest was a rapid transit project involving the construction of a rail line through the north-western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The line included the conversion of the existing Epping to Chatswood Ra ...
project. As a result, the traditional Northern line route from Hornsby to Central via Strathfield was reinstated. The closed section was replaced by
Station Link
Buses account for close to six per cent of trips each day in the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, forming a key part of the city's public transport system. The network initially evolved from a privately operated system of feeder serv ...
bus services until it reopened as metro. On 28 April 2019, this route became a separate
T9 Northern Line, with the T1 renamed the North Shore & Western Line.
[
]
Railway line history
The T1 uses a number of different railway lines and is the result of various schemes to link the lines together. The line is centred around the Main Suburban railway line
The Main Suburban railway line is the technical name for the trunk railway line between Redfern railway station and Parramatta railway station in Sydney, Australia, but now generally refers to the section between Redfern and where the Old Main ...
which runs from Central to Granville, which continues as the Main Western line at Granville. The Richmond railway line branches from the Main Western line at Blacktown.
In the other direction from Central towards the North Shore, the T1 uses the North Shore Line towards Hornsby, then continues along the Main North Line towards Berowra.
Main Western and Richmond railway lines
The Main Western railway line opened to Penrith in 1863 as a branch from the junction with the Main South line
The Main South Line, sometimes referred to as part of the South Island Main Trunk Railway, is a railway line that runs north and south from Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the South Island to Inverca ...
at Granville.
North Shore railway line
The North Shore railway line was opened on 1 January 1890 between Hornsby and St Leonards St Leonards may refer to:
Places Australia
*St Leonards, New South Wales
**St Leonards railway station
*St Leonards, Tasmania, suburb of Launceston
*St Leonards, Victoria
Canada
*St. Leonard's, Newfoundland and Labrador
New Zealand
* St L ...
. The line was extended to the Sydney Harbour
Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea (p ...
foreshore at Milsons Point
Milsons Point is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The suburb is located 3 kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of North Sydney Council.
Mil ...
in 1893. Transport between this original Milsons Point station and central Sydney was by ferry boat. The line was electrified in 1927.
When the Sydney Harbour Bridge was opened in 1932 a new Milsons Point station (on the bridge approach) came into operation and the North Shore Line was extended through it and over the Sydney Harbour Bridge to link with the underground lines of central Sydney. The result is that the two ends of the North Shore Line link to the Sydney railway system at Central
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
and Hornsby.
Main North railway line
The T1 uses the section of the Main North railway line between Hornsby and Berowra, which was opened in 1887 and electrified in 1959.
Route
The route passes through a number of business districts and major centres, namely Hornsby, Chatswood, North Sydney, the Central Business District, Parramatta, Blacktown and Penrith.
The line heads south from Berowra to Hornsby using the Main North Line. Trains then divert onto the North Shore Line, eventually passing through North Sydney station before heading across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, through the western limb of the City Circle
The City Circle is a mostly-underground railway line located in the Sydney central business district and Haymarket, in New South Wales, Australia, that forms the core of Sydney's passenger rail network. The lines are owned by the Transport A ...
and the stations of Central and Redfern. Services then run along the Main Suburban Railway, usually using the middle 'Suburban' pair of the six tracks between Redfern and Strathfield. Services do not stop at intermediate stations between Redfern and Strathfield.
Services continue west from Strathfield to Granville where trains join the Main Western Line. After passing through Parramatta, trains reach Blacktown, where the line divides in two. A western branch continues along the Main Western Line as far as Emu Plains and a north-western branch heads to Richmond using the Richmond Line.
Patronage
The following table shows the patronage of Sydney Trains network for the year ending 30 June 2022.
References
External links
Sydney Trains North Shore, Northern & Western Line timetables
Transport for NSW
Neety's Train Page
- information on suburban stations.
New South Wales Railways
- historical information on suburban stations.
New South Wales Transport Information
Australian Railmaps
- information & maps of train services & stopping patterns.
Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation project website
{{DEFAULTSORT:North Shore and Western Line
Railway lines in Sydney
Standard gauge railways in Australia
Sydney Trains
Hornsby Shire