Fremantle railway station

History

The original Fremantle station opened in Cliff Street on 1 March 1881 as the terminus of the Eastern Railway to Guildford via Perth. As the Eastern Railway was extended, its importance grew. It became an important hub for gold miners arriving in Western Australia via ship and then travelling to the Yilgarn and Eastern Goldfields when the line opened to Kalgoorlie in 1896.

In 1907, a new station and marshalling yards were established 300 metres to the north-east on the site of the former Fremantle Railway Workshops to better service the newly constructed Fremantle Harbour.

The station was designed by William Dartnall, Chief Engineer of Existing Lines of the Railway Department in 1905. The construction contract, at an estimated cost of £80,000, was awarded in May 1906 to S.B. Alexander and completed on 20 April 1907, with the official opening on 1 July 1907.

Originally, the station had three 150 metre platforms, one side and one island, with a subway connection and an overall roof. This had been taken out of use by the 1960s and was later demolished. Until the 1960s, passenger services continued south of Fremantle to Kwinana. A signal cabin was relocated from the eastern end of the platform to the Bennett Brook Railway in 1985.

The station closed on 1 September 1979 along with the rest of the Fremantle line.

Opposite the station once lay an extensive yard. Today, only a stabling siding and dual gauge freight line that is served by trains from Cockburn to the container terminal at North Quay remain.

Restoration

The station features Donnybrook stone construction on the façade with red face brick infill panels on a Donnybrook stone plinth, in Federation Free Classical style featuring a rare example of a large train hall roof. The facade remained unpainted (except for metalwork and timberwork) until it was painted in 1950.

The station was classified by the National Trust in 1974 and entered into the Heritage Council of Western Australia's Register of Heritage Places in 2001. This included paint removal and restoration of the main entry façade, refurbishment of most of the internal areas and an electrical upgrade to bring the station up to modern standards. In August 2011, the project was completed with the restoration of external facades of the station building.

In popular culture

Fremantle station featured in the 2006 film Last Train to Freo.

Services

Train services

Fremantle station is the terminus of Transperth's Fremantle line, with frequent services to Perth that continue through to Midland via the Midland line.

Fremantle station saw 1,481,023 passengers in the 2013–14 financial year.

Platforms

Bus routes

Stands 1–5

Stands 6–10

Stands 11–13

References

References

1. (21 September 2001). "Fremantle Railway Station". Heritage Council of Western Australia.
2. [http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/Portals/0/docs/Freo%20ped%20crossing/33134%20PTA%20%20Conservation%20of%20Fremantle%20Station%20Final.pdf Conserving Fremantle Railway Station for Future Generations] {{Webarchive. link. (25 April 2013 Public Transport Authority)
3. [https://web.archive.org/web/20080721030836/http://www.righttrack.wa.gov.au/Portals/3/media/History_Fremantle.pdf History of Stations on the Fremantle Line] Right Track
4. (12 August 1905). "The proposed new Fremantle Railway Station". [[The West Australian]].
5. (13 May 1906). "Fremantle Railway Station". [[The Sunday Times (Western Australia).
6. (1 July 1907). "New railway station at Fremantle opened today". [[Daily News (Perth, Western Australia).
7. (1981). "Robb's Railway Fremantle to Guildford Railway Centenary". Australian Railway Historical Society.
8. (29 June 1907). "New Fremantle Railway Station to be opened on Monday". [[The West Australian]].
9. "Bennett Brook Railway" ''[[Railway Digest]]'' September 1999 page 43
10. MacTiernan, Alannah. (29 July 2003). "20th anniversary of re-opening of Perth to Fremantle passenger rail line". Government of Western Australia.
11. [http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/aboutus/ourhistory/tabid/42/default.aspx Our History] {{Webarchive. link. (22 January 2016 Public Transport Authority)
12. McAllister, Philip. (2006). "Fremantle Railway Station entry facade conservation". The Royal Australian Institute of Architects.
13. Waldock, Reece. "Network and Infrastructure". Perth Transport Authority Annual Report Year Ended 30 June 2010.
14. [http://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/timetablepdfs/Fremantle%20Line%2020160131.pdf Fremantle Line Timetable] {{Webarchive. link. (21 February 2016 Transperth 31 January 2016)
15. [https://bitre.gov.au/publications/2012/files/report_131.pdf Understanding Australia's urban railways] {{Webarchive. link. (14 March 2016 Bureau of Infrastructure Transport & Regional Economics July 2012 page 12)
16. "Question On Notice No. 4244 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 25 June 2015 by Mr M. Mcgowan".
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