Milsons Point railway station

Milsons Point railway station is a heritage-listed suburban railway station located on the North Shore line, serving the Sydney suburb of Milsons Point. It is served by Sydney Trains T1 North Shore line services. The station is elevated and is accessible via both stairs and a lift. It was designed and built by the Sydney Harbour Bridge Branch of the NSW Department of Public Works. The property was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

History

thumb|The original station on the day it closed to traffic

thumb|Aerial view of construction of the northern approach to the [[Sydney Harbour Bridge. The original railway alignment and construction work on the realignment for extension across the bridge can both be seen.]]

thumb|Eastern entrance

thumb|Sketch showing both pairs of platforms at Milsons Point

In 1815, government architect Francis Greenway, in a report to Governor Macquarie, proposed the building of a bridge from Dawes Point at the city's edge to the northern shore. The original Milsons Point station was not in its present location, but on the edge of Sydney Harbour approximately on the site of the present northern pylon of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the North Sydney Olympic Pool. This location enabled passengers from the North Shore to transfer directly from steam trains to ferries to reach Circular Quay. It opened as the southern terminus of the North Shore railway line on 1 May 1893. when extended from its previous terminus at St Leonards (opened from Hornsby 1 January 1890). The site, squeezed between the rock cliffs and the edge of Sydney Harbour was cramped, with two side platforms, one of which was built on piles partly over the water's edge, and three tracks between, including a centre road. Immediately adjoining it to the west was the colonnaded Milsons Point ferry wharf for the ferry service to Circular Quay in the Sydney central business district and tram terminus for the North Sydney cable tramway (opened 22 May 1886) and subsequently electrified from 11 February 1900.

Concrete had been extensively used for foundations and walls since the 1890s. By 1910, reinforced concrete was in use, but not for superstructures directly supporting railway tracks. The Bellevue Street underbridge at Glebe was the first to use it for this purpose, in 1919. Due to later overcrowding, a third platform was added on 12 December 1920 by removing the centre road track and laying a new track on inland side of the new platform 2. This station remained in use until the site was requisitioned to allow construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

It was not until 1922 that legislation was passed and acted upon, authorising the construction of a bridge. Tenders were invited in 1923 in accordance with general plans and specification prepared by Dr John Bradfield, Chief Engineer, Sydney Harbour Bridge and Railway Construction. The plans and specification provided the alternatives of a cantilever or an arch bridge. Twenty proposals were received from six different companies of various types of design. The tender of Dorman Long & Co Ltd, of Middlesbrough, England, for an arch bridge was accepted, the design being substantially in accordance with one of Dr Bradfield's proposals. The detailed design was carried out by the contractor's consulting engineer, Sir Ralph Freeman, and the fabrication and construction were under the direct charge of Mr Lawrence Ennis, a director of the firm. The design and construction of the bridge were supervised at all stages by Dr Bradfield and his staff. The tram line was also relocated to terminate adjacent to the entrance to the new station in Glen Street. First work on the bridge commenced in 1924 with construction of the bridge approaches and the approach spans. Construction of the approach spans was undertaken concurrently with erection of the steelwork for the actual bridge structure. The building of the approaches on the north side included the construction of North Sydney Station, Milsons Point Station and a number of underbridges to carry the railway. The approaches were designed and built by the Sydney Harbour Bridge Branch of the Public Works Department and the Metropolitan Railway Construction Branch of the NSW Government Railways. The northern approaches were built using spoil from the excavation of the North Sydney station site to build a ramp up to the main bridge level. Retaining walls of concrete, built by Monier Concrete, were built along Broughton and Alfred Streets and Bradfield and Pacific Highways.

|p1blinename = T9

|p1bstop = Services to Epping & Hornsby via Central & Strathfield

|p1bnotes =

|p1clinename = CCN

|p1cstop = 6 Weekday Morning peak services to Blacktown via Central

|p1cnotes =

|p2alinename = T1

|p2astop = Services to Lindfield, Gordon, Hornsby & Berowra

|p2anotes =

|p2blinename = T9

|p2bstop = Services to Gordon

|p2bnotes =

269: to McMahons Point wharf
286: to Denistone East (PM peak hour only)
287: to Ryde (PM peak hour only)
thumb|View of the Sydney Harbour Bridge from platform 2 of Milsons Point Station290: to Epping

CDC NSW operates one weekday peak hour bus service from Milsons Point station:

622: to Dural via Cherrybrook

Keolis Downer Northern Beaches operates five bus routes via Milsons Point station:

150X: to Manly
154X: to Dee Why
228: to Clifton Gardens
229: to Beauty Point
230: to Mosman Bay wharf

Trackplan

Heritage listing

As at 25 October 2010, Milsons Point station has state historical significance as an essential component of the northern approaches to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The form and detail of the subway and tunnels in particular are significant as part of the overall design and specifications for the bridge as set down by Chief Engineer JJC Bradfield. The Milsons Point station retains a number of original features and decorative elements from its original construction phase including the platform building and entrance way awning from the Alfred Street side.