And the Adelaide City Council.
> Their reasons for doing so are that Keswick is a dusty outcrop nowhere near
> the centre of Adelaide and difficult to get transport from, that Adelaide
> station is ideally situated in the centre of Adelaide close to hotels and
> the like, that it is far more grand and welcoming to tourists. It was also
> claimed that a lot of people rock up at Adelaide station to catch their
> train 10 minutes before departure only to be told they have to take a 5
> minute cab ride to Keswick!
>
Perhaps this is so in some cases.
But the parking is better at Keswick for dropping off and picking up
interstate passengers. There are a number of parking stations around
Adelaide station but none with easy access to the platforms.
> If such a proposal were to be implemented it would no doubt cost a few
> million dollars. Not only would they need to bring a standard track into
> Adelaide station which would be very complicated with all the broad gauge
> lines, but there would be signalling problems and TransAdelaide clashes,
> not to mention the fact that Adelaide station is not set up for the
> handling of luggage or interstate passengers anymore.
>
The longest platforms are 1 and 2 on the southern side of the station.
To get to these would mean bring the standard guage accross all 8 broad
guage running lines and through some complex pointwork.
The logical place is on the northern side of the station.
The standard guage line from Melbourne would parallel the existing up
suburban then cross (on the level) the 2 Port Adelaide and 2 Gawler
line tracks. There is little impediment by way of broad guage
pointwork for this track.
The standard guage line from the north would have to branch off just
after the Torrens Bridge and cross the afore mentioned broad guage
lines, this time through the broad guage Gaol Loop connections, and
run on the northern side of the Up Gawler line to meet the line from
Melbourne and Keswick.
The two lines would then pass under the opening in the Morphett Street
Bridge now used by North bound traffic from the car park complex and
go where?
The only place I can see is to demolish or severly modify the car park
just north of the station.
Alternately the old North Car Yard could be used but then you might as
well be at Keswick.
And what about 26 car trains as in the double length IP's or through
working from Alice Springs to Melbourne?
And potential conflicts between Interstate and Commuter trains?
The cost? Considerably more than a few million I would suspect.
> As much as I would like Adelaide station to be our interstate terminal, I
> cannot see the state government forking out so much money...nor GSR.
>
When they work all of this out for themselves I can't see it either!
-- Neil Waller (nwaller@denr.sa.gov.au) Department of Environment Heritage and Aboriginal Affairs Telephone: Oz: (08) 8204 9218; International: (618) 8204 9218 Mail: GPO Box 1047, ADELAIDE 5001 AustraliaUnless explicitly attributed, the opinions expressed are personal and not those of DEHAA or the South Australian Government.