Sydenham railway station

Sydenham is an interchange station at the junctions of the Bankstown and Illawarra railway lines and is 5.30km from Central. It serves the inner west suburbs of Sydenham and Marrickville. The station consists of two side and two island platforms connected by an overhead concourse. Sydenham is serviced by T3 Bankstown Line and peak hour T8 East Hills &amp; South Line trains on platforms 3-4, and T4 Eastern Suburbs &amp; Illawarra Line trains on platforms 5-6. Platforms 1-2 are currently closed for conversion works to service Sydney Metro driverless trains starting in 2024.

Sydenham is staffed 24 hours everyday.

History
Sydenham Railway Station was built on a duplicated line from Illawarra Junction to Hurstville and opened as Marrickville on 15 October 1884. The western platform contained a major 3rd class brick station building having a detached toilet block at each end separated by walled courtyards while the eastern platform contained a large 2nd class brick station building. The station was renamed to Sydenham on 19 January 1895 with the opening of the Belmore branch line. In 1896, Sydenham became a junction station with the opening of the Bankstown line with the current platforms 3 and 4 opened.

The impressive station was obviously intended to serve the Marrickville township proper but it was distant, surrounded by industrial and rural estates and only grew as a station by reason of the need to cope with the branch line junction. In 1907 the line from Edgeware Road to Sydenham was quadruplicated to serve the Belmore to Bankstown extension when it opened in 1909. This resulted in confining both buildings on island platforms so that passengers had to reach the platforms by an extended footbridge, whereas the substantial platform building on the current platform 2/3 island previously faced the street. A new timber overhead booking office on a steel support frame was built between Platforms 3 and 4 and steel footbridges were eventually extended to all platforms c. 1914.

To provide for the proposed Eastern Suburbs railway line, two additional tracks were put in so that in 1925 the brick standard island platform building on Platform 6 was built. In 1926 the lines were electrified at Sydenham. Soon after, in 1927 the refreshment room was opened for factory workers in the area. As the additional tracks were never utilised for the Eastern Suburbs Railway they have been mainly used for the Bankstown line trains. In 1963 a brick parcels office building was constructed on Platform 1 but closed in the late 1980s.

It had been intended that the tracks on platforms 1 and 2 would extend along the alignment to Erskineville as an adjunct to the Eastern Suburbs railway. This plan was never completed, although partial platforms were erected at St Peters and Erskineville in preparation. Because of this, Bankstown line trains continue to run on the same tracks as East Hills services, and the result of the additional platforms is that the Bankstown line's junction with the Illawarra line has been merely moved from the south of Sydenham station to the north.

The weatherboard ticket office on the overhead footbridge burnt down in the mid 1980s. In the late 1980s a new brick overhead booking office and a new metal-clad shop were built on the existing c. 1914 footbridge structure, and new canopies built over the stairs and connected to platform buildings.

Sydenham station now has side platforms at both the eastern and western extremities of the station (platforms 1 and 6 respectively) and two island platforms for the four inner tracks. In its original state, platforms 1 and 2 served the Bankstown Line and Platforms 5 and 6 serve the Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra Line. Prior to the opening of the Airport line in May 2000, all East Hills line services operated via platforms 3 and 4. Most East Hills trains now run via the Airport line, although some peak hour services continue to travel via Sydenham using these platforms.

A new concourse including four lifts and new stairs to access the platforms opened in February 2013, replacing the previous concourse and footbridge. The upgrade also included new ticketing facilities, a new family accessible toilet and staff facilities. The entrance also received a new tile wall with "Sydenham" written on the wall. There are also bicycle racks placed at this new entrance.

Immediately south of the station, the Metropolitan Goods Line to Port Botany crosses via a pratt truss bridge that opened in 1925, while beyond lies the XPT Service Centre.

Sydney Metro Upgrade
As part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project,a new concourse will be built at the northern end of the station, with platforms 1 and 2 demolished and rebuilt further north, allowing them to be straight. The project is expected to be completed in 2024. After the conversion, platforms 1 and 2 will serve Sydney Metro, while platforms 3-6 will continue to serve existing Sydney Trains services, with platforms 3 and 4 serving the T8 East Hills line and platforms 5 and 6 serving the T4 Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra line, allowing Sydenham to become an interchange point with trains and metro.

As part of these works, over Christmas & New Year 2019, platforms 1 and 2 were taken out of use, with the junction with the Bankstown line moved back to its original position to the south of the station. The main structure of the new northern concourse was also installed during this time. During this time until metro services commence in 2024, all T3 Bankstown Line services will use platforms 3 and 4.

Configuration
Sydenham station is an open-cut station with the platforms underneath the concourse and overpass on Gleeson Avenue, where the main station entry is located. Stairs and lifts are located inside the concourse to let passengers access the platforms below. There are crossovers at Sydenham allowing northbound trains to terminate on platforms 3 and 4 and southbound trains to terminate on platform 4.