Re: Some oddities in Sydney Underground system?

["Ronald BESDANSKY" <ronbest@bigpond.com>]

Matthew Geier <matthew@mail.usyd.edu.au> wrote in message
7smu9b$ok5$1@metro.ucc.usyd.edu.au">news:7smu9b$ok5$1@metro.ucc.usyd.edu.au...
> In article <7smqh1$hsk1@xlprod01.westpac.com.au>,
> David <drhilder(nospamjunk)@hotmail.com> wrote:
> >I have lurked here for a while and havent seen any questions like this,
> >
> >if there is a faq that answers this stuff, please point me in the right
> >direction.
> >
> >anyway,
> >
> >here is a couple of questions/oddities I have noted about the Sydney
> >underground railway system.
> >
> >1 - Wynyard Station has platfroms 3,4 and 5,6. where is platform 1 and
2???
>
>  Next to tthe other upper platforms. Now a car park. Nth Sydney trams used
to
> run over the Bridge and terminate there. It was never a railway platform
as
> such. The tunnels dont run any more than 50metres or so further south.
>
>  The car park is easly acessable and once in there, you will see what part
> used to be the station and the tunnels are easy to locate.
>
Why the platforms haven't been renumbered in the last 40 years remains a
mystery!

> >2 - St James looks like it was designed to have 4 train tunnels rather
then
> >the present 2 (just look at the roof for confirmation of this. what
> >happened?
>
>  The Eastern Suburbs line was supposed to run throuth St James. This never
> happened. The platforms may have been used before Circular Quay opened, im
> not sure. They were never used for their intended lines.
>  (Inner West to Town Hall (Platforms now used by the ESR lines), around
through
> to St James then of to the Eastern Suburbs)
>
The tunnels north of the station were occupied by two terminating tracks,
one facing off the City Inner (Platform 1) and the other trailing onto the
City Outer (Former platform 4, now Platform 2). There was a pair of
crossovers between the two tracks. They were used for terminating trains
before the Wynyard-St James section opened, and for emergency terminations
after that date. One or two trains a day were scheduled to terminate at St
James to keep the rails clean and check that things were still working. In a
rather short-sighted, penny-pinching move, these facilities were abolished a
few years ago, along with the crossover between the City Inner & Outer just
north of Wynyard. ARHS run regular tours of the tunnels north & south of St
James.

>
> >4 - Why dont country trains go through wynward and over the bridge?
>
>  They do when the track work closes the other route. Sydney Terminal faces
> the wrong direction. Its not much quicker via the shore anyway.

Two other reasons - North Shore residents complain about the noise of diesel
trains, and  there is some concern about the structures supporting the
tracks at Town Hall station not being designed to carry "heavy" trains -
although this applies more to diverting freight trains.

Rgds

Ron BESDANSKY