Circular Quay railway station, Sydney

Circular Quay
Eastbound view from Platform 2 in August 2017
Location	Alfred Street, Sydney CBD, New South Wales, Australia
Owned by	RailCorp
Operated by	Sydney Trains
Line(s)	City Circle
Distance	2.6 km from Central
Platforms	2 side
Tracks	2
Connections
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Disabled access	Yes
Architect	John Bradfield (designer)
Architectural style	Inter-War Functionalist
Other information
Status	Staffed
Station code	CQY
History
Opened	22 January 1956
Electrified	Yes
Services Preceding station   Sydney Trains   Following station Wynyard towards Parramatta or Leppington T2 Inner West & Leppington Line St James One-way operation Wynyard One-way operation T3 Bankstown Line St James towards Lidcombe or Liverpool St James towards Macarthur T8 Airport & South Line Wynyard One-way operation
Route map

Circular Quay railway station is a heritage-listed elevated commuter rail station that is located on the City Circle route, serving the Circular Quay precinct of the Sydney central business district in New South Wales, Australia. It is served by Sydney Trains T2 Inner West & Leppington, T3 Bankstown and T8 Airport & South line services.

Circular Quay is an area of historical significance for Sydney, as it was for a long time the central harbour of a settlement which relied on shipping for its connection to the outside world. By the 20th century, ferry commuter wharves began to eclipse commercial shipping wharves as the dominant feature of the Quay area. The area became a transport hub as it served as the terminus of both ferry and tram services.

Planning for a railway station here to complement this transport hub began in 1909, and work was authorised in 1915. Tunnels to link the surrounding stations to the future Circular Quay station were built from Central between 1917 and 1926 to St James (eastern section) and 1932 to Wynyard (western section). Work on the section of the railway through Circular Quay began in 1936, was interrupted by World War II, and recommenced in 1945. Work was again interrupted between 1951 and 1953 with the viaduct finally completed in 1954. The supporting beams were fabricated at Chullora Railway Workshops in the 1930s. They were used during the construction of the Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge in the 1940s, before being returned to Chullora.