The North Shore & Western Line (numbered T1, coloured orange) is a

commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...

service operated by

Sydney Trains Sydney Trains is the brand name and operator of Railways in Sydney, suburban and intercity train services in and around Greater Sydney in New South Wales, Australia. The metropolitan part of the network is a hybrid urban rail, urban-suburban r ...

, serving 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 of

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

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 (TfNSW) is a Government of New South Wales, New South Wales Government transport services and roads List of New South Wales government agencies, agency established on 1 November 2011. The agency is a different entity to the NSW ...

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 between North London and South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. It carries more passengers per year than any other Underground linearound 340million in 2019making it the bu ...

() 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 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 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 Main Southe ...

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, New Zealand, Lyttelton in New Zealand through Christchurch and along the east coast of the ...

at Granville. Electrification reached Parramatta in 1928 and Penrith in 1955. A branch line was opened to Richmond in 1864 under the stewardship of engineer James Moore. Electrification from Riverstone to Richmond opened in August 1991. Through running to and from Sydney commenced in 1992.

North Shore railway line

The North Shore railway line was opened on 1 January 1890 between Hornsby and St Leonards. The line was extended to the

Sydney Harbour Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a ria, natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove River, Lane ...

foreshore at

Milsons Point Milsons Point is a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is located three kilometres north of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of North Sydney. Milsons Point is also the geo ...

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 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, New South Wales, Haymarket, in New South Wales, Australia, that forms the core of Sydney's passenger rail network. The lines are ...

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 2024.

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 1500 V DC railway electrification