Bankstown railway line#Services

File:Cooks River and Bankstown railway line from the air (13113706185).jpg between Sydenham and Campsie]]

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As originally built, the line branched from the Illawarra railway line just south of Sydenham at Meeks Road Junction, approximately 6 kilometres southwest of Central. From here the line runs westward along the valley of the Cooks River, parallel to the Metropolitan Goods railway line. At Dulwich Hill the line passes by the former Wardell Road Junction, where the Dulwich Hill light rail line now terminates with an overbridge interchange to the railway station.{{Cite web |author=Transport for NSW |author-link=Transport for NSW |date=2023-10-09 |title=New footbridge opens at Dulwich Hill Station |url=https://www.mysydney.nsw.gov.au/news/new-footbridge-opens-dulwich-hill-station |access-date=2024-05-26 |website=www.mysydney.nsw.gov.au |publisher=NSW Government}}

Just past Canterbury, the line crosses to the southern side of the Cooks River. From here the line passes through Campsie, after which the Metropolitan Goods railway line turns away from the alignment towards Enfield Yard. Between Punchbowl and Bankstown is the former location of the Punchbowl Maintenance Depot, which has since been redeveloped for housing."Punchbowl Closure Forces Timetable Changes" Railway Digest February 1995 page 8

Bankstown is the foremost station on the line. Originally a through station, it is being rebuilt into two abutting terminal stations, with Sydney Metro services to operate eastward from it and Sydney Trains services to operate westward.{{cite report |author=Sydney Metro |author-link=Sydney Metro |date=May 2020 |title=Sydenham to Bankstown Upgrade: Bankstown Station modification report |url=https://majorprojects.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/prweb/PRRestService/mp/01/getContent?AttachRef=SSI-8256-MOD-1%2120200507T215252.169%20GMT |publisher=NSW Government |access-date=2024-11-01}}

Just west of Bankstown the line turns sharply northward, passing through Yagoona and Birrong to reach the western endpoint of the line at Sefton Park Junction. Here, the line connects to the Main Southern railway line between Regents Park and Sefton.{{cite web |title=Sefton Park East Junction |url=https://nswrail.net/locations/show.php?name=NSW:Sefton+Park+East+Junction |website=NSWrail.net |access-date=1 July 2007 |archive-date=4 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704064847/http://www.nswrail.net/locations/show.php?name=NSW:Sefton+Park+East+Junction |url-status=live}}

{{See also|Metro North West & Bankstown Line|Lidcombe & Bankstown Line}}

The line has been used primarily for suburban passenger services since its opening. Though some freight services used the line earlier in its history,[https://web.archive.org/web/20060825131015/http://www.cityrail.info/news/060206-bankstown2.jsp The Bankstown Line - an early history] CityRail cargo traffic is now confined to the dedicated freight tracks of the parallel Metropolitan Goods railway line between {{rwsa|Marrickville}} and {{rwsa|Campsie}}.

Historically, the connection of the Bankstown railway line to other railway lines at each end allowed suburban passenger services to operate a large loop from the City Circle via the Main Suburban railway line, {{rwsa|Lidcombe}} and {{rwsa|Regents Park}} to {{rwsa|Bankstown}} before returning to the City Circle via {{rwsa|Sydenham|S}} and the Illawarra railway line, and vice versa.{{cite web |last=Booth |first=Cameron |title=Historical Map: Sydney Rail Network, Early 1980s |url=https://transitmap.net/sydney-1984/ |website=Transit Maps |date=5 July 2014}} It also allowed services to begin from {{rwsa|Liverpool|S}} or Lidcombe and reach the City Circle via Bankstown and Sydenham without using the Main Suburban railway line.{{cite web |author=RailCorp |author-link=RailCorp |title=CityRail network map |url=https://data.nsw.gov.au/data/dataset/3-10485-cityrail-network-map |website=Data.NSW |publisher=NSW Government |access-date=8 September 2021 |date=June 2008}} This was the configuration in which Sydney Trains services most recently operated over the full length of the line, branded as the T3 Bankstown Line.{{cite web |author=Transport for NSW |author-link=Transport for NSW |title=Sydney Rail Network Map - 19 August 2024 |url=https://opendata.transport.nsw.gov.au/dataset/c18f0e6c-2bfe-4c3f-b947-cbde01a7d2f6/resource/89fd8605-ddeb-4d2f-b2e4-d6ce4192b22e/download/smcsw-sydney-rail-network-map_1stround.pdf |website=Transport Open Data Hub |publisher=NSW Government |access-date=1 November 2024 |date=19 August 2024}} This service was withdrawn on 30 September 2024.{{cite press release |author=Minister for Transport |author-link=Minister for Transport (New South Wales) |date=29 September 2024 |title=End of an era as Bankstown line braces for transformation |url=https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/end-of-an-era-as-bankstown-line-braces-for-transformation |publisher=NSW Government |access-date=1 November 2024}}

In mid-October 2024, Sydney Trains began operating T6 Lidcombe & Bankstown services west from Bankstown to Lidcombe.{{cite press release |author=Transport for NSW |author-link=Transport for NSW |date=18 October 2024 |title=Reminder to plan ahead: New train timetable starts Sunday |url=https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/news-and-events/media-releases/reminder-to-plan-ahead-new-train-timetable-starts-sunday |publisher=NSW Government |access-date=1 November 2024}} East of Bankstown to Sydenham, services are suspended for works to convert the line to Sydney Metro standards, after which M1 North West & Bankstown services will operate over that part of the line.

File:Dulwich Hill railway station and Metropolitan Goods line.JPG on the Bankstown railway line, at left, in 2010. Parallel at right is the Metropolitan Goods railway line. The former Rozelle branch of the Metropolitan Goods railway line is at the top right; it has since been converted to light rail.]]

The line opened on 1 February 1895, initially as a branch from the Illawarra railway line at Sydenham to Belmore."NSW Railway Passenger Services 1880-1905" Australian Railway History" April 2005 Railway authorities initially conceived of the line as a opportunity to alleviate pressure on the Old Main South railway line by providing an alternate route to Liverpool, and also to advance development of the intervening land. However, the 1890s depression constrained the development of the line.[http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=4801091 Marrickville Railway Station Group] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160126151308/http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=4801091 |date=26 January 2016 }} NSW Office of Environment & Heritage

Increased suburban development prompted the line to be extended to Bankstown on 14 April 1909, with intermediate stations at Lakemba and Punchbowl. In 1916, the Metropolitan Goods railway line was constructed, running parallel to the line between Marrickville to Campsie. On 16 July 1928, the line was extended from Bankstown to Sefton Park Junction, where it joined the Main Southern railway line between Regents Park and Sefton. This allowed trains to operate to Liverpool, or in a loop back toward the City Circle via Lidcombe and the Main Suburban railway line.{{cite web |title=Bankstown line |url=https://www.nswrail.net/lines/show.php?name=NSW:bankstown |website=NSWrail.net |access-date=1 July 2007 |archive-date=8 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170908091119/http://www.nswrail.net/lines/show.php?name=NSW:bankstown |url-status=live}}

In 1926, the line between Sydenham and Bankstown became the second in Sydney to be electrified. To service the new electric rolling stock, Punchbowl Maintenance Depot was built on the line just east of Bankstown. Electrification was extended from Bankstown to Regents Park in 1939.{{cite magazine |title=Sydney Electric Trains From 1926 to 1960 |work=Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin |date=April 2001 |issue=762}} A new station between Lakemba and Punchbowl at Wiley Park opened on 19 June 1938.{{cite NSW HD|4801946|Wiley Park Railway Station Group}} Punchbowl Maintenance Depot closed in 1994.

In January 2006, a four-year project to upgrade the line was completed. The work included the re-sleepering of the entire line, replacing the former wooden sleepers with the more durable concrete ones, replacement and upgrade of the signalling, and also replacement of the ageing catenary, mostly with the more modern double contact wire variety. The lengthy upgrade process was noted for its "January Closedowns", in which the entire line was closed in January for the bulk of the upgrade work to take place.[https://web.archive.org/web/20060628173813/http://www.cityrail.info/news/060206-bankstown.jsp Bankstown Line upgrade successfully completed] CityRail 6 February 2006

File:Canterbury station 2022.jpg

As part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project, the line from Sydenham to Bankstown is being converted from its current double deck commuter rail configuration to a rapid transit line.{{Cite web |last=Sydney Metro |author-link=Sydney Metro |title=Bankstown Line metro conversion approved |url=https://www.sydneymetro.info/sites/default/files/2021-09/Bankstown_Line_Metro_Conversion_Newsletter.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923081121/http://sydneymetro.info/sites/default/files/2021-09/Bankstown_Line_Metro_Conversion_Newsletter.pdf |archive-date=23 September 2023 |access-date=3 November 2023 |publisher=NSW Government}} This will allow much a higher frequency service and will alleviate bottlenecks in the Sydney Trains system, but ensuring the line meets modern metro standards is a technically challenging undertaking, particularly with some of the stations which have curved platforms over a century old.[http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/builders-of-sydneys-new-metro-line-need-to-straighten-out-curved-platforms-20151204-glfks3.html Builders of Sydney's new metro line need to straighten out curved platforms] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160209164512/http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/builders-of-sydneys-new-metro-line-need-to-straighten-out-curved-platforms-20151204-glfks3.html |date=9 February 2016 }} Sydney Morning Herald 4 December 2015

Planning approval of the upgrade of the line between Sydenham and Bankstown was received in December 2018.{{cite web|title=Sydney Metro Bankstown Line Metro Upgrade gets green light|url=https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/news-and-events/media-releases/sydney-metro-bankstown-line-metro-upgrade-gets-green-light|publisher=Transport for NSW|access-date=13 January 2020|date=19 December 2018|archive-date=18 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190618191452/https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/news-and-events/media-releases/sydney-metro-bankstown-line-metro-upgrade-gets-green-light|url-status=live}} Intermittent temporary closures began in December 2019 for works to prepare for the conversion to metro standards, with the expectation of a longer, extended closure to occur immediately prior to the commencement of metro services.{{cite web|url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/rail-line-closures-to-force-100-000-commuters-a-day-to-catch-buses-20190718-p528eg.html|title=Rail line closure to force 100,000 commuters a day to catch buses|work=Sydney Morning Herald|date=18 July 2019|access-date=19 July 2019|archive-date=19 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190719084144/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/rail-line-closures-to-force-100-000-commuters-a-day-to-catch-buses-20190718-p528eg.html|url-status=live}}[https://www.sydneymetro.info/sites/default/files/document-library/Sydenham_to_Bankstown_Preferred_Infrastructure_Report_Overview.pdf Sydenham to Bankstown Preferred Infrastructure Report Overview] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190822105451/https://www.sydneymetro.info/sites/default/files/document-library/Sydenham_to_Bankstown_Preferred_Infrastructure_Report_Overview.pdf |date=22 August 2019 }} Sydney Metro June 2018

In 2023, with conversion of the line having fallen a year behind schedule,{{Cite web |last=O'Sullivan |first=Matt |date=2023-04-10 |title='Nightmare': Residents enter fourth year of Metro pain as construction drags on |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nightmare-residents-enter-fourth-year-of-metro-pain-as-construction-drags-on-20230405-p5cy8h.html |access-date=2023-05-06 |website=The Sydney Morning Herald |language=en |archive-date=6 May 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230506002644/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nightmare-residents-enter-fourth-year-of-metro-pain-as-construction-drags-on-20230405-p5cy8h.html |url-status=live }} the NSW Government announced that the opening of Sydney Metro City & Southwest would be staged, with metro services not reaching Bankstown until late 2025, after a 12-month closure of the line for conversion works.{{cite press release |date=1 August 2023 |title=Minns Labor Government will deliver Sydenham to Bankstown section of City and Southwest Metro |url=https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/sydenham-bankstown-metro |location=Sydney |publisher=NSW Government |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230804232214/https://www.nsw.gov.au/media-releases/sydenham-bankstown-metro |archive-date=4 August 2023 |access-date=15 November 2023}} Since 30 September 2024 the line east of Bankstown has been temporarily closed, with buses replacing rail services between Sydenham and Bankstown.{{cite web |author=Transport for NSW |author-link=Transport for NSW |title=Southwest Link |url=http://transportnsw.info/southwest-link |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=transportnsw.info |publisher=NSW Government}}

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{{Railway lines in New South Wales|state=collapsed}}

Category:Canterbury, New South Wales

Category:Standard-gauge railways in Australia

Category:Bankstown, New South Wales