Devonshire Street Tunnel

Devonshire Street Tunnel
Overview
LocationSydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia (Map)
Coordinates33°53′7″S 151°12′24″E / 33.88528°S 151.20667°E / -33.88528; 151.20667
StartSurry Hills (east)
EndRailway Square (west)
Operation
Opened1906
OwnerTransport Asset Holding Entity
TrafficPedestrians
Technical
Length300 metres (980 ft)

The Devonshire Street Tunnel is a 300-metre-long (980 ft) pedestrian tunnel located beneath the southern end of Central station connecting the suburb of Surry Hills with Railway Square in the Sydney central business district.

The tunnel is currently closed due to nearby construction.[1]

History

Devonshire Street Tunnel in the 1970s prior to redevelopment.

Opened in 1906 joining as a pedestrian continuation of Devonshire Street in the east to Lee Street in the west, it cut through what was the Devonshire Street Cemetery.[2] In the early 1970s, the tunnel was refurbished with terrazzo panels and fluorescent lights and extended 80 metres (260 ft) to the west under Railway Square.[2][3][4][5] In 1985 murals of trains and railway infrastructure were painted on the walls of the tunnel.[6]

Route

At its eastern end, the tunnel begins at a head house descending from Chalmers Street to a vestibule from which both Central station and the tunnel can be accessed. The tunnel continues west from the vestibule under the tracks and platforms of the station, and opens onto Henry Deane Plaza, a depressed urban square opposite Railway Square filled with shops and restaurants.[7]

The tunnel extension begins at a portal at the opposite end of Henry Deane Plaza, continuing under Lee Street, Railway Square, and George Street, each of these points at which it can be accessed by stairs and escalators. The tunnel extension then continues under the TAFE Marcus Clark Building and finally opens up at a portal behind the International Institute of Business and Information Technology at 841 George Street, connecting it to The Goods Line, providing an off-street connection between Central station and Darling Harbour.

References

  1. ^ https://www.atlassiancentral.com.au/#:~:text=The%20Devonshire%20Street%20Tunnel%2C%20which,be%20closed%20during%20this%20time.
  2. ^ a b "Tunnels and Underground Spaces". visitsydneyaustralia.com.au. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  3. ^ "Tunnelling through the past". Sydney Architecture.
  4. ^ "Central Railway Station & Sydney Terminal Group". New South Wales Heritage Database. Office of Environment & Heritage.
  5. ^ Railway Square Subway to be Renovated Railway Digest August 1971 page 5
  6. ^ SR puts a lift in everyone's step State Wide June 1985 page 2
  7. ^ Home Henry Deane Plaza

Media related to Devonshire Street Tunnel at Wikimedia Commons