List of closed railway stations in Perth explained

This is a list of stations that have been closed since the building of railways in metropolitan Perth, Western Australia.

Mundaring Line

In some cases there are stations that were so effectively removed that there are no traces left, such as Bellevue. However, at Mundaring and Darlington, concrete platform edges remain.

Although Mundaring Branch Railway stations were closed in 1954, it was not until the 1960s that the line was formally closed, and the line and stations removed after that.

Metropolitan lines

The lines to Karragullen along the Upper Darling Range Railway, and to Chidlow (via Parkerville or Mundaring), were considered to be part of the metropolitan service by the Western Australian Government Railways administration at the time they were operating.

Section closures

In some cases single stations were closed for logistical reasons; generally it was a group of stations when a section of railway was closed.

1881–1930

• Fremantle railway station at Cliff Street (1881–1907), demolished upon the construction of the new Fremantle railway station at Market St.^[1]
• East Fremantle (1881–1907), rebuilt 1886, removed upon the construction of the new Fremantle railway station at Market St.^{[2] [3] [4]}

1930–1949

Upper Darling Range line

Closed to traffic in July 1949, due to the 1949 Australian coal strike^[5]

• Bushmead
• Rifle Range
• Ridge Hill (at or near -31.9378°N 116.0435°W)
• Gooseberry Hill (at or near -31.9562°N 116.0517°W)^[6]
• Kalamunda
• South Kalamunda
• Walliston
• Bickley (at or near -31.9975°N 116.0759°W)
• Carmel (at or near -32.0074°N 116.0868°W)
• Turner's Siding
• Pickering Brook
• Canning Mills (at or near -32.0681°N 116.1047°W)
• Karragullen (at or near -32.0861°N 116.1158°W)

1950–1966

Mundaring Weir line

• Wonyil, closed 14 November 1952^{[7] [8]}
• O'Connor (originally No 2 Pumping Station), opened 1922, closed 14 November 1952^[8]
• Portagabra, opened 1936, closed 14 November 1952^[8]
• Karda Mordo, opened 1919, closed 14 November 1952^[8]
• Mundaring Weir, opened 1910, closed 14 November 1952^{[7] [8]}

Bayswater–Belmont Spur of the Midland Line

See main article: Belmont railway line, Western Australia. Closed in January 1957 after fire damaged the rail bridge over the Swan River

• Whatley, Bayswater, terminus of the Belmont spur from 1885 to 1897 until construction of the Belmont Bridge.^{[9] [10]}
• Belmont, terminus of the Belmont spur line from 1897

Eastern Railway First Route (Mundaring Loop)

Traffic ceased on the Mundaring Loop between Bellevue and Mount Helena in 1954 before it was officially closed by parliament in 1966.^[11]

• Koongamia 1962 - 1966
• Greenmount, stayed open for Mountain Quarry, Boya until 1 January 1966^[11]
• Boya
• Darlington
• Glen Forrest
• Nyaania
• Mahogany Creek
• Zamia
• Mundaring
• Sawyers Valley
• Mount Helena

South Western Railway

• Canning Park Racecourse was closed in 1952;^[7] from then on, access was via a siding from Maddington. Later, it was truncated to a 100 m siding for the loading of blue metal from Swan Quarry, in Orange Grove. Closed and removed by 1975.

Eastern Railway Second Route

The Second Route closed on 13 February 1966.

• Midland Junction
• Bellevue
• Helena Vale
• Swan View
• National Park
• Hovea
• Parkerville
• Stoneville
• Chidlow

1966–2000

During this period, a number of stations were closed on the 1906-era line to Robbs Jetty and Spearwood line.

The 1987 America's Cup defence had seen the construction of railway stations established to transport people during the event.^[12]

• • Esplanade, demolished in 2018.^[13]
  • Success Harbour, demolished in 2018.
  • South Beach
• Spearwood
• Leighton, opened November 1922, closed 28 July 1991. This station closed when the North Fremantle station was relocated further north of its original position. It was named after Leighton's Crossing, which was named for Mrs Ann Leighton, the crossing gatekeeper in the late 1880s.
• Stokely was situated on the South Western Railway between Maddington and Gosnells at the Albany Highway crossing. Opened 1954, closed 15 April 1989.^[14]
• Tredale was situated on the South Western Railway 800 metres south of Armadale railway station, opened in 1956 as Armadale School siding, renamed Tredale in 1959, closed in 1989.^[8]
• West Perth on the east side of the West Perth Subway, which served the Perth Metropolitan Markets, was closed. A new station, on the west side of the subway, was opened on 18 June 1986 as West Perth. Its name was changed to City West on 19 November 1987.

2000–present

• Lathlain, Armadale Line, closed 3 February 2003
• Belmont Park (ABP), Armadale Line, closed 13 October 2013^[15]
• Welshpool (AWL), Armadale Line, closed 20 November 2023.^[16]

See also

• Closed railway stations in Western Australia, for non-Perth closures

Resources

• A useful map drawn by J. Austin showing all rail services intact as of 1949 is found in Finlayson, Don (1986) Steam around PerthARHS Western Australia page 48. The list of closures is in table form on pages 49 and 50.
• Higham, G.J. 'Where WAS that? : an historical gazetteer of Western Australia' Winthrop, W.A. : Geoproject Solutions Pty Ltd, 2006. 2nd ed.
• Watson, Lindsay The Railway History Of Midland Junction : Commemorating The Centenary Of Midland Junction, 1895–1995 Swan View, W.A : L & S Drafting in association with the Shire of Swan and the Western Australian Light Railway Preservation Association, [1995]
• Watson, Lindsay.Midland Junction Railway Station Western rails, Vol 9, no.4(July 1987), p. 10–12
• Verney, Terry 'Thru Midland' The WESTLAND issue 218, March 2003 p. 4
• Ellis . J. A. . Hood . S. J. . Railway Map of Western Australia . 1941 . 2022-06-01 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201111202647/https://www.railmaps.com.au/Map_WA_1941.jpg . 2020-11-11 .

Notes and References

1. News: Fremantle Railway Station . 19 March 2015. The West Australian. 2 July 1907. Perth, Western Australia. 4.
2. News: Government Gazette. 19 March 2015. The Herald. 24 September 1881. Fremantle, Western Australia. 2.
3. News: Fremantle . 19 March 2015. The West Australian. 4 February 1886. Perth, Western Australia. 3.
4. News: The East Fremantle Railway Station. 19 March 2015. The West Australian. 10 October 1907. Perth, Western Australia. 4.
5. News: Complaints about new railway bill. 19 March 2015. The West Australian. 1 December 1950. Perth, Western Australia. 4.
6. Web site: K.Z.Z.R. MAPS . Kev's Workshop . 2022-05-06 . 2022-06-01 .
7. Finlayson, Don (1986) Steam around PerthARHS Western Australia p.49
8. Web site: Historical Gazetteer. Geoproject Solutions. 14 May 2017. Perth, Western Australia. pdf. 6 October 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20160301085802/http://www.geoproject.com.au/News/Gaz_5_output_06Oct15.pdf. 1 March 2016. dead.
9. News: Bayswater. 15 July 2014. The Daily News. 17 January 1914. Perth, Western Australia. 14.
10. News: Bayswater Road Board. 15 July 2014. The West Australian. 21 June 1923. Perth, Western Australia. 8.
11. Quinlan, Howard & Newland, John R. (2000) Australian Railway Routes 1854-2000 WN45, page 66
12. - noting the text 'The train travelled between Fremantle and the new stations at the Esplanade Reserve, Success Harbour and South Beach. The new stations were established to transport people during the America's Cup.'
13. Web site: Fremantle Line Platform Demolitions. https://web.archive.org/web/20181123200058/http://www.pta.wa.gov.au/projects/completed-projects/fremantle-line-platform-demolitions. dead. 2018-11-23. 2018-11-23. 2019-06-08.
14. Web site: Legislative Council . Parliament of Western Australia. Hansard. 14 May 2017. Perth, Western Australia. 1512. 31 August 1989.
15. http://www.urbanalyst.com/in-the-news/western-australia/2021-perths-belmont-park-station-to-close-in-october-in-preparation-for-new-stadium-station.html Perth's Belmont Park station to close in October in preparation for new stadium station
16. https://www.metronet.wa.gov.au/news/latest-news/armadale-line-shutdown-begins-20-november