Woy Woy Tunnel
Encyclopedia
The Woy Woy railway tunnel, opened on the 15th August, 1887, is located between Wondabyne and Woy Woy railway stations on the Newcastle and Central Coast railway line which follows the route of the Main North railway line
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, whilst constructing a permanent solution.
Between April 1887 and May 1889, the Woy Woy Tunnel's major benefit of significantly reduced travel times were not able to be fully appreciated by passengers until the completion of the Hawkesbury-Mullet Creek section of track which involved the construction of the first Hawkesbury River railway bridge. Prior to the opening of the Hawkesbury-Mullet Creek section, which was dictated by the opening of the Hawkesbury River bridge, passengers disembarked from either Hawkesbury River, from the south, and Mullet Creek (closed 11 September 1897), from the north. Mullet Creek was located 400 metres north of the current Wondabyne station and 1.5km from the western entrance to the Tunnel. Passengers were required to catch a ferry between Hawkesbury River and Mullet Creek that met with trains at both terminus.
with 11' centres. Problems started to arise when in 1910 a new standard for carriages of 10' 6" and for track centres of 10' 6" (3.33m) was adopted.
In 1972 new double deck trains required the removal of brickwork in the top corners of the circular tunnel profile.
This original route and Tunnel location was not adopted.
24 November 1917, a young man named Darcy Bell (aged 29) was killed in the Woy Woy tunnel by the 2 p.m. passenger train from Sydney. Bell, a returned soldier, was employed by the Railway Commissioners as a guard at the southern mouth of the tunnel. He was proceeding to his work when the accident occurred.
12 September 1921, at the inquiry held by the District Coroner, Mr W. E. Kirkness, regarding the death of Cecil T. Pike (aged 22), a railway shunter at Clyde, who was knocked down and killed by a passenger train in the Woy Woy tunnel shortly after 10 pm. The deceased was spending the weekend fishing at Wondabyne and was in Woy Woy earlier in the evening. He returned to Wondabyne with another railway employee on a tricycle, but afterwards walked back along the line to look for a coat which had been dropped. His body was found about 80 chains from the Woy Woy end of the tunnel. A verdict of accidental death was returned. The coroner remarked that there was no evidence of any negligence on the part of the train officials.
21 September 1931, a Hawkesbury College student fell from a train In Woy Woy tunnel, his thigh being broken and one of his legs severed.
22 August 1940, four men were killed and four others injured by a good train in the Woy Woy Tunnel shortly before 1 pm. The seven men were employees of the Railway Department who were, along with another 50 men in 3 gangs, working in the tunnel on draining and concreting the lines. Two trains passed through the tunnel going in both directions, the men were warned of their approach by the watchman. The trains left dense smoke in the tunnel which has electric lights along the walls. Visibility in the tunnel was poor due to the train engines’ smoke. A few minutes later a goods train travelling from Enfield to Broadmeadows entered from the Hawkesbury end, the seven men were not aware that this train was approaching and it was on them before they could jump to safety. The driver of the goods train did not see the men, a man’s cap was found on the front of the engine at Woy Woy Station. Those killed were: Michael Shelley (aged 47), married of Punchbowl suffered decapitation and a severed leg; John Dillon (aged 37), married of South Woy Woy suffered a broken neck, Lynton Munce (aged 44) of Paddington suffered decapitation and Andrew Jack Blackie (aged 41), married of West Wallsend. The injured were: William Whitten (aged 31) of Cardiff who suffered a fractured skull, severe abrasions and lacerations all over his body; Andrew J Blackie (aged 41) of West Wallsend who suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries; Reginald Mason (aged 28) of Adamstown who suffered a fractured skull and ribs and Angus Blakely (aged 41) of West Wallsend who suffered a fractured skull and severe lacerations. With the exception of Blackie, all were married. Andrew Jack Blackie passed away in Newcastle Hospital approximately 24 hours after the incident. Men engaged on railway repairs in the tunnel decided at a meeting to refrain from working in the tunnel until visibility at either end was clear. The men requested for trains to be run on one line through the tunnel during repair work. The proposal to stand by to await a clearing of the smoke would reduce the element of risk to a reasonable minimum and reduce the danger to life to a positive minimum. 19 September 1940, at the inquest yesterday into the death of four men who were killed by a goods train in the Woy Woy tunnel, the driver of the train said that his vision was blank for part of the journey through the mile-long tunnel. During the Inquest the District Coroner, Mr C. J. Staples, said that they were the victims of a system that sometimes put earnings and profits above human life. Mr Staples returned a finding of accidental death and was quoted as saying,
Main North railway line, New South Wales
The Main North Line is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Central Coast, Hunter and the New England regions. The line was the original main line between Sydney and Brisbane, however this required a change of gauge at Wallangarra...
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Statistics & facts
- Tunnel length 1 mile and 4 chains (1.6898112 km);
- Construction without cessation night and day, excepting only upon Sundays;
- 300 men employed in the excavation works;
- Over 100 tons of gunpowder and 10 tons of dynamite;
- Perforation work by 10 percussion rock-drills using by compressed air obtained from a 40 horse-power engine;
- Excavation of rock 124,500 cubic yards (95,187.0798 m3);
- Bricks laid 10,000,000 approximately supplied by Gore Hill Brickworks;
- Cement casks no less than 10,000;
- Built on Homebush-Waratah Line to connect Northern and Southern systems of railway.
- At completion it was the longest railway tunnel in Australia;
- During construction the tunnel entrance had a crimson streamer stretched across it with the Latin phrase Labor omnia vincit, meaning, Hard work conquers all;
- Tunnel height 22 feet 9 inches with a width of 28 feet 4 inches;
- The hill rises 600 feet above the tunnel;
Milestones
- Construction commenced 1 March, 1884;
- Breaking through ceremony 17 July, 1886;
- Construction concluded???
- Official opening 15th August, 1887.
Problem during construction
15 November 1887, MB. H. DEANE, inspecting engineer of the Railway Department, returned to Sydney from an inspection of the Woy Woy tunnel. It was revealed that a creek which passes over a portion of the tunnel was swollen by an unusually heavy rainfall. The water forced its way through the creek bed, around a portion of the tunnel lining and found an outlet through the weep-holes of the masonry work. No damage was done to the tunnel. To prevent the possibility of any future problems arising, it was proposed to temporarily channel the creek over the tunnel using flumesFlume
A flume is an open artificial water channel, in the form of a gravity chute, that leads water from a diversion dam or weir completely aside a natural flow. Often, the flume is an elevated box structure that follows the natural contours of the land. These have been extensively used in hydraulic...
, whilst constructing a permanent solution.
Homebush-Waratah line
The construction of the Homebush-Waratah Line was broken up into sections:- Hornsby-Hawkesbury, 15 miles, opened 7th April, 1887;
- Hawkesbury-Mullet Creek, 5 miles, opened 1 May 1889;
- Mullet Creek-Gosford, 10 miles, opened 16th January, 1888;
- Gosford-Waratah, 50 miles, opened 15th August, 1887.
Between April 1887 and May 1889, the Woy Woy Tunnel's major benefit of significantly reduced travel times were not able to be fully appreciated by passengers until the completion of the Hawkesbury-Mullet Creek section of track which involved the construction of the first Hawkesbury River railway bridge. Prior to the opening of the Hawkesbury-Mullet Creek section, which was dictated by the opening of the Hawkesbury River bridge, passengers disembarked from either Hawkesbury River, from the south, and Mullet Creek (closed 11 September 1897), from the north. Mullet Creek was located 400 metres north of the current Wondabyne station and 1.5km from the western entrance to the Tunnel. Passengers were required to catch a ferry between Hawkesbury River and Mullet Creek that met with trains at both terminus.
Gauge and Loading Gauge
The line was built with tracks and a loading gauge that accommodated 8' 4" wide carriages on double trackDouble track
A double track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.- Overview :...
with 11' centres. Problems started to arise when in 1910 a new standard for carriages of 10' 6" and for track centres of 10' 6" (3.33m) was adopted.
In 1972 new double deck trains required the removal of brickwork in the top corners of the circular tunnel profile.
Original planned tunnel location
The following extract is from the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, 1st December 1881, Answers to Questions, as reported by The Sydney Morning Herald, in relation to connecting the Great Southern and Northern Lines via the construction of the Homebush-Waratah Line:- ...From this point the line takes a north-easterly direction towards Flat Rock Point, crosses the channel between the southern mainland and Long Island; thence across the Hawkesbury River to Dangar Island (37 miles from Redfern); and thence across the main channel of the river to a tunnel through the cliffs on the northern bank to Patonga Creek; thence by a tunnel through the high land between that creek and Woy Woy Creek, thence across that creek and skirting the western shore of Brisbane Water, across Narrara Creek through to the village of Gosford (49 miles)...
This original route and Tunnel location was not adopted.
Tragedy
19 January 1917, a fettler was killed and another severely injured in the Woy Woy tunnel by a goods train. Prior to the tragedy the train had a minor accident inside the tunnel about 100 yards from the Woy Woy end. In order to get it out, the train had to be uncoupled in the middle and the engine proceeded to Woy Woy with the first half of the train. As the engine with the first half of the train went pass 3 fettlers and a ganger working just inside the tunnel on the down rails (those leading to Gosford) they merely regarded it as a complete train. When the engine returned from Woy Woy for the second half of trucks it ran back on the same line. The workers hearing the engine approach, travelling tender foremost showing no light, mistakenly thought they were stepping out of the way of a train heading in the opposite direction. Mr Julius Christiansen, of Woy Woy, was hurled forcibly against the wall of the tunnel and died almost instantly of head injuries. Mr James McKay, also of Woy Woy, was knocked down by Mr Christiansen’s flight, and received slight injuries to the leg. The other fettler and the ganger escaped uninjured.24 November 1917, a young man named Darcy Bell (aged 29) was killed in the Woy Woy tunnel by the 2 p.m. passenger train from Sydney. Bell, a returned soldier, was employed by the Railway Commissioners as a guard at the southern mouth of the tunnel. He was proceeding to his work when the accident occurred.
12 September 1921, at the inquiry held by the District Coroner, Mr W. E. Kirkness, regarding the death of Cecil T. Pike (aged 22), a railway shunter at Clyde, who was knocked down and killed by a passenger train in the Woy Woy tunnel shortly after 10 pm. The deceased was spending the weekend fishing at Wondabyne and was in Woy Woy earlier in the evening. He returned to Wondabyne with another railway employee on a tricycle, but afterwards walked back along the line to look for a coat which had been dropped. His body was found about 80 chains from the Woy Woy end of the tunnel. A verdict of accidental death was returned. The coroner remarked that there was no evidence of any negligence on the part of the train officials.
21 September 1931, a Hawkesbury College student fell from a train In Woy Woy tunnel, his thigh being broken and one of his legs severed.
22 August 1940, four men were killed and four others injured by a good train in the Woy Woy Tunnel shortly before 1 pm. The seven men were employees of the Railway Department who were, along with another 50 men in 3 gangs, working in the tunnel on draining and concreting the lines. Two trains passed through the tunnel going in both directions, the men were warned of their approach by the watchman. The trains left dense smoke in the tunnel which has electric lights along the walls. Visibility in the tunnel was poor due to the train engines’ smoke. A few minutes later a goods train travelling from Enfield to Broadmeadows entered from the Hawkesbury end, the seven men were not aware that this train was approaching and it was on them before they could jump to safety. The driver of the goods train did not see the men, a man’s cap was found on the front of the engine at Woy Woy Station. Those killed were: Michael Shelley (aged 47), married of Punchbowl suffered decapitation and a severed leg; John Dillon (aged 37), married of South Woy Woy suffered a broken neck, Lynton Munce (aged 44) of Paddington suffered decapitation and Andrew Jack Blackie (aged 41), married of West Wallsend. The injured were: William Whitten (aged 31) of Cardiff who suffered a fractured skull, severe abrasions and lacerations all over his body; Andrew J Blackie (aged 41) of West Wallsend who suffered a fractured skull and internal injuries; Reginald Mason (aged 28) of Adamstown who suffered a fractured skull and ribs and Angus Blakely (aged 41) of West Wallsend who suffered a fractured skull and severe lacerations. With the exception of Blackie, all were married. Andrew Jack Blackie passed away in Newcastle Hospital approximately 24 hours after the incident. Men engaged on railway repairs in the tunnel decided at a meeting to refrain from working in the tunnel until visibility at either end was clear. The men requested for trains to be run on one line through the tunnel during repair work. The proposal to stand by to await a clearing of the smoke would reduce the element of risk to a reasonable minimum and reduce the danger to life to a positive minimum. 19 September 1940, at the inquest yesterday into the death of four men who were killed by a goods train in the Woy Woy tunnel, the driver of the train said that his vision was blank for part of the journey through the mile-long tunnel. During the Inquest the District Coroner, Mr C. J. Staples, said that they were the victims of a system that sometimes put earnings and profits above human life. Mr Staples returned a finding of accidental death and was quoted as saying,
- I hope the Railway Commissioner will tighten up the efforts for greater safety for his employees. When union officials ask for safety conditions it should not be thought that they are putting one over the boss. Employers should recognise workmen’s and union’s fears and I believe this would result in the saving of life. You may hear that such people are agitators trying to make it harder for the Commissioner. But I hold that the men and officials concerned who advise on safe working conditions should be given serious consideration.
See also
- Hawkesbury River Railway BridgeHawkesbury River Railway BridgeThe Hawkesbury River Railway Bridge spans the Hawkesbury River just north of the town of Brooklyn on the northern outskirts of Sydney, Australia...
- Main North railway lineMain North railway line, New South WalesThe Main North Line is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Central Coast, Hunter and the New England regions. The line was the original main line between Sydney and Brisbane, however this required a change of gauge at Wallangarra...
- Newcastle and Central Coast railway line
- Woy Woy, New South WalesWoy Woy, New South WalesWoy Woy is a coastal town and a southern suburb of the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia, located on the southern reaches of Brisbane Water north of Sydney...
- Woy Woy railway station
- Wondabyne railway station