Pitt Street, Sydney
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Pitt Street is a major street in the
Sydney central business district The Sydney central business district (CBD) is the historical and main Central business district, commercial centre of Sydney. The CBD is Sydney's city centre, or Sydney City, and the two terms are used interchangeably. Colloquially, the CBD or ...
in
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. The street runs through the entire city centre from
Circular Quay Circular Quay is a harbour, former working port and now international passenger shipping terminal, public piazza and tourism precinct, heritage area, and transport node located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the northern edge of the ...
in the north to
Waterloo Waterloo most commonly refers to: * Battle of Waterloo, 1815 battle where Napoleon's French army was defeated by Anglo-allied and Prussian forces * Waterloo, Belgium Waterloo may also refer to: Other places Australia * Waterloo, New South Wale ...
, although today's street is in two disjointed sections after a substantial stretch of it was removed to make way for Sydney's Central railway station. Pitt Street is well known for the pedestrian only retail centre of
Pitt Street Mall Pitt Street Mall is the pedestrianised section of Pitt Street in the Sydney central business district, in the Australian state of New South Wales. Running for approximately 200 metres between Market Street and King Street, it is one block lo ...
, a section of the street which runs from King Street to Market Street. Pitt Street is a one way (southbound only) from Circular Quay to Pitt Street Mall and (northbound only) from Pitt Street Mall to
Goulburn Street Goulburn Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Goulburn Street is in the southern portion of the Sydney central business district and runs from Darling Harbour and Chinatown in the west, t ...
, while Pitt Street Mall is for pedestrians only. It is dominated by retail and commercial office space.


History

Pitt Street was originally named Pitt Row, and is one of the earliest named streets in Sydney. Pitt Street is believed to have been named by
Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
Arthur Phillip Arthur Phillip (11 October 1738 – 31 August 1814) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first Governor of New South Wales, governor of the Colony of New South Wales. Phillip was educated at Royal Hospital School, Gree ...
in honour of
William Pitt the Younger William Pitt (28 May 1759 – 23 January 1806) was a British statesman who served as the last prime minister of Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain from 1783 until the Acts of Union 1800, and then first Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, p ...
, at the time, the
Prime Minister of Great Britain The prime minister of the United Kingdom is the head of government of the United Kingdom. The prime minister advises the sovereign on the exercise of much of the royal prerogative, chairs the Cabinet, and selects its ministers. Modern pr ...
. In 1853, Pitt Street was extended north from Hunter Street to
Circular Quay Circular Quay is a harbour, former working port and now international passenger shipping terminal, public piazza and tourism precinct, heritage area, and transport node located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, on the northern edge of the ...
. Pitt Street was previously a one-way street in a southerly direction from Circular Quay to Campbell Street. In preparation for the construction of the
Pitt Street Mall Pitt Street Mall is the pedestrianised section of Pitt Street in the Sydney central business district, in the Australian state of New South Wales. Running for approximately 200 metres between Market Street and King Street, it is one block lo ...
, in February 1987 the sections between Hunter Street and
Martin Place Martin Place is a pedestrian mall in the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. Martin Place has been described as the "civic heart" of Sydney.
, and Martin Place and King Street were converted to two-way cul de sacs to allow the Martin Place plaza to be extended. This was later reverted and today the Circular Quay to King Street section is one-way throughout in a southerly direction. From Goulburn Street to Park Street was converted to become one-way in a northerly direction. The Market Street to Park Street section initially remained as a southbound street, but was later converted to run northbound. The
Goulburn Street Goulburn Street is a street in the central business district of Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. Goulburn Street is in the southern portion of the Sydney central business district and runs from Darling Harbour and Chinatown in the west, t ...
to Campbell Street section was converted to two-way.


Tram line

The Circular Quay to
Central station Central stations or central railway stations emerged in the second half of the nineteenth century as railway stations that had initially been built on the edge of city centres were enveloped by urban expansion and became an integral part of the ...
line was an important part of the Sydney tram network. It was an extremely busy service for passengers transferring from suburban trains, particularly prior to the opening of the
City Circle The City Circle is a mostly-underground railway line located in the Sydney central business district and Haymarket, New South Wales, Haymarket, in New South Wales, Australia, that forms the core of Sydney's passenger rail network. The lines are ...
underground railway line in 1926. Trams operated in a loop from Central station, running north along Pitt Street to Circular Quay returning south via
Castlereagh Street Castlereagh Street is a major street located in the Sydney central business district in New South Wales, Australia. The street runs north-to-south, in a One-way traffic, one way direction only. Description Castlereagh Street's northern terminu ...
. These tracks were also used by some
eastern Eastern or Easterns may refer to: Transportation Airlines *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai * Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 192 ...
and south-western routes during busy periods. The line closed on 27 September 1957 with four tram services replaced with buses and three others diverted to operate via Elizabeth Street. The line made use of the sandstone viaduct onto the colonnade above
Eddy Avenue Eddy Avenue is a street in the Sydney central business district of New South Wales, Australia. It runs west from Elizabeth Street to Pitt Street outside Central station. History Eddy Avenue was built in 1905, during the construction of Centra ...
at Central station, which since 1997 has formed part of the
Inner West Light Rail The Inner West Light Rail is a light rail line in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, running from Central railway station, Sydney, Central railway station through the Inner West to Dulwich Hill railway station, Dulwich Hill and serving 23 sto ...
.


Heritage-listed properties

The following properties, located on or adjacent to Pitt Street, are listed on various national, state, and/or local government heritage registers: * Bulletin Place warehouses, on Bulletin Place, between Pitt Street and Macquarie Place * Commonwealth Trading Bank Building * Kings Hotel *
Pitt Street Uniting Church The Pitt Street Uniting Church is a heritage-listed Uniting church building located at 264 Pitt Street in the Sydney central business district, Australia. Founded in 1833, the congregation was the original church of Congregationalism in New So ...
* Soul Pattinson Building *
The Strand Arcade The Strand Arcade is a heritage-listed Victorian-style retail arcade located at 195–197 Pitt Street in the heart of the Sydney central business district, between Pitt Street Mall and George Street in the City of Sydney local government are ...
* Sydney School of Arts building *Former
Sydney Water Head Office The Sydney Water Head Office, now known as Kimpton Margot Sydney is a heritage-listed hotel, formerly an office building, located in the Sydney central business district in New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Henry Budden & Mackey ...
*
The Sydney Club The Sydney Club is a heritage-listed club premises at 122 Pitt Street, in the Sydney central business district, in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Mansfield Brothers and built from 1 ...
* Wales House, now part of the
Radisson Blu Radisson Blu is an international hotel brand managed and operated by Radisson Hotels, and owned by Choice Hotels, Jinjiang International and the Radisson Hotel Group. Founded as the SAS Hotels in 1960, the Radisson Blu brand name came into exi ...
hotel chain


Pitt Street Cycleway

During the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020 the City of Sydney installed a "pop up" (or temporary) cycleway on Pitt Street. This cycleway was the busiest of all the pop up cycleways installed, with an average of 4430 weekly trips. In March 2021 the city announced the cycleway would become permanent. It now connects to the King Street cycleway at the south end.


Gallery

File:The first Tramways Dated c. 10 1 1880 Depot at Pitt Street.jpg, Sydney's first Tramways depot, corner of Pitt Street and what was then Gipps St West and Garden Road, looking SE across the Old Cemeteries towards .
Eddy Avenue Eddy Avenue is a street in the Sydney central business district of New South Wales, Australia. It runs west from Elizabeth Street to Pitt Street outside Central station. History Eddy Avenue was built in 1905, during the construction of Centra ...
roughly follows Garden Road, . File:(1) City Tattersals Club.JPG,
City Tattersalls Club The City Tattersalls Club is a social club in Sydney. The club was formed in 1895 by a group of bookmakers disgruntled with a judge's decision on a race at Kensington, New South Wales. The club named itself after the Tattersalls Club, Sydney, ...
File:The Sydney Club, 122 Pitt Street.jpg,
The Sydney Club The Sydney Club is a heritage-listed club premises at 122 Pitt Street, in the Sydney central business district, in the City of Sydney local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Mansfield Brothers and built from 1 ...
File:(1) Pitt Street (a).JPG, Building in Italianate style File:(1) Pitt Street (d).JPG, Restored 1903 building File:Pitt Street Mall, 2014.jpg,
Pitt Street Mall Pitt Street Mall is the pedestrianised section of Pitt Street in the Sydney central business district, in the Australian state of New South Wales. Running for approximately 200 metres between Market Street and King Street, it is one block lo ...
from King Street looking south File:Pitt Street, Sydney, looking south from The Powerhouse Museum Collection.jpg, Looking south c. 1900 File:1 Pitt and Hunter002.jpg, Archival image of Pitt and Hunter Streets, showing Wales House File:(1)Pitt St Uniting Church-5.jpg,
Pitt Street Uniting Church The Pitt Street Uniting Church is a heritage-listed Uniting church building located at 264 Pitt Street in the Sydney central business district, Australia. Founded in 1833, the congregation was the original church of Congregationalism in New So ...
interior File:Building labourer on a stone being hoisted up to building, Pitt St, Sydney, c. 1930s, by Sam Hood (4441498235).jpg, Building labourer on a stone being hoisted up to building, Pitt St, Sydney, c. 1930s. Photo by
Sam Hood Samuel John Hood (20 August 1872 – 8 June 1953) was an Australian photographer and photojournalist born in South Australia whose career spanned from the 1880s to the 1950s.CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work". A CC license is used when an author wants to give other people the right to share, use, and bui ...
] *
CC-By-SA A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted "work". A CC license is used when an author wants to give other people the right to share, use, and bui ...
] {{Streets of Sydney Australia Pitt Street, Sydney