Kalgoorlie railway station

About

Kalgoorlie railway station is the easternmost attended station in Western Australia, located at the eastern terminus of the Eastern Goldfields Railway. It serves the city of Kalgoorlie. Beyond Kalgoorlie, the line continues east as the Trans-Australian Railway.

Construction of the railway station and yard was begun in the late 1890s, as part of the extension of the Eastern Goldfields Railway from Coolgardie in January 1897. The station was formally opened by the Governor of Western Australia, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Gerard Smith KCMG, at a ceremony held on the station platform on 8 September 1896.

In the early stages of the development of railways in the Eastern Goldfields, it was the junction for the following railways:

- Kalgoorlie to Boulder, the Boulder Townsite Loop railway line, opened 8 November 1897

- Kalgoorlie to Kanowna, the Kalgoorlie to Kanowna railway line, opened 6 December 1897

- Kalgoorlie to Menzies, on the Kalgoorlie to Leonora railway line, opened 24 March 1898 In 1917, Kalgoorlie became a break-of-gauge station when the Commonwealth Railways ' standard gauge Trans-Australian Railway from Port Augusta opened. This ceased on 3 August 1968, when the Eastern Goldfields Railway was gauge converted.

Surveyed in 1899, the line went from Kalgoorlie station. The platform linking to the line was at the east end and on the south side of the main platform.

Due to costs and passenger decline, in 1920, some of the stations listed below were reduced in status by ceasing to be booking stations: Hannan Street, Golden Gate, Brown Hill and Trafagar. In 1921, fares increased. In 1930, the passenger service was closed.

The main platform was at one point, the longest in Western Australia at 527 metres. It was eclipsed by the new East Perth Terminal platform, built for the 1969-70 extension of standard gauge into Perth.

At each end of the main platform used by the Indian Pacific are bay platforms; the three to the east (adjacent to the former water tank and signal box) were where Boulder and Brown Hill loop lines and Trans-Australian passenger services arrived; and the western one is where the current Prospector services terminate. The eastern bays gradually fell out of use after the withdrawal of passenger services on the Boulder and Brown Hill loop lines, and the extension of the standard gauge line and Trans-Australian train to Perth.

Due to it being the western terminus of the Trans-Australian Railway, the station has been the location of a number of commemorations and ceremonies from the opening of that railway in 1917 and since.

Kalgoorlie is served by the Transwa Prospector rural train service and the Indian Pacific. It was also previously served by the Kalgoorlie Express, The Westland and Trans Australian.

The Prospector service runs to and from East Perth once or twice each day.

The Indian Pacific also stops here. It runs once a week each way between East Perth and Sydney Central.

The Indian Pacific also stops here. It runs once a week each way between East Perth and Sydney Central.