Darwin_railway_station

Darwin railway station

Darwin railway station

Railway station in the Northern Territory, Australia

Darwin railway station, also known as Berrimah Passenger Terminal is the terminus station of the Adelaide-Darwin rail corridor in the Darwin suburb of East Arm, Northern Territory.[1] The station is 2975 km (1849 mi) from Adelaide Parklands Terminal station, 3.5 km (2.2 mi) from the end of the line and 18 km (11 mi) by road from Darwin's city centre. In front of the station building is a paved area 60 metres (200 feet) long, but sealed hardstanding 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.

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History

Locations of Darwin's original and current railway stations

From 1889 to 1973, the North Australia Railway ran through Darwin and terminated at its own Darwin station. This station was at a different site to the modern one, near what is now Fishermans Wharf[2] (and like the city, it was known as "Palmerston" until 1911).

The current Darwin station opened on 4 February 2004 when The Ghan operated the first passenger service on the newly constructed line from Alice Springs.[3] In July of that year, a small 0-4-0 steam locomotive, built in 1886 by Baldwin Locomotive Works, was put on display in the station.[4] As the first locomotive in the Northern Territory, it was used during construction of the Palmerston and Pine Creek Railway and for 63 years more on the line. It became known as Sandfly.

In 2008 the NT Motor Vehicle Enthusiasts Club substantially refurbished Sandfly 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.[5][6]

Services

The sole passenger services to Darwin are provided by The Ghan, which as of 2021 operated weekly in each direction.[7]

The Ghan experiential tourism train being loaded for its 2975 km (1849 mi) journey to Adelaide

References

  1. [1]
    Berrimah / East Arm map Archived 2015-04-02 at the Wayback Machine SA Track & Signal
  2. [2]
    Geographical Section, General Staff, War Office (1942). Sketch map Darwin (Map). Australia 1:63,360. Retrieved 1 May 2023.{{cite map}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  3. [3]
    "Adelaide - Darwin rail link". Darwin Port Corporation. Archived from the original on 8 March 2014. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  4. [4]
    "Narrow Gauge No.107 - NA 1 - Sandfly". www.comrails.com. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  5. [5]
    ""Sandfly" Oldest and longest serving locomotive (63 years) on the NAR line". Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 8 March 2014.
  6. [6]
    "The 1934 QANTAS hangar". Motor Vehicle Enthusiasts Club Inc. Northern Territory. 2017. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  7. [7]
    Ghan Timetable April 2021 to December 2021 Archived 26 October 2022 at the Wayback Machine Journey Beyond

Media related to Darwin railway station at Wikimedia Commons
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