Nostalgic Sydneysiders are saddened to learn that demolition work has begun on another important part of the city’s old monorail network.
The harbour-side monorail station, which dropped off commuters at its original location in Darling Harbor, was demolished this week.
The station was one of seven stops on the defunct monorail network that carried passengers throughout Sydney’s greater central business district.
Sydneysiders are devastated after learning that demolition work on the monorail has begun
The station is one of seven stops on the defunct monorail network that connected the city to Darling Harbour, Chinatown and the Spanish Quarter
Scaffolding has been erected around the Harborside site, marking an official end to the station which served locals between 1988 and 2013.
Photos of the demolition were shared on social media where Sydneysiders expressed their grief.
“They’re demolishing the monorail station in Darling Harbor… You have no idea how upset I am,” one person wrote on Twitter.
Others shared fond memories of riding the network in the past.
“I did this when I was a kid was so much fun, would have preferred this when (sic) the stupid tram they put back,” someone wrote on Facebook.
“When I lived in Sydney I used to catch it to Darling Harbor…it was just quick and easy to get there…it’s a shame it’s gone,” added another.
Others advocated preserving the monorail network.
“Don’t take away the monorail station… Imagine a cool little bar or coffee shop there,” someone wrote on Reddit.
“I don’t know why Sydney would want to erase monorail history when they can have a little fun and embrace it.”
The monorail, which opened in 1988, ceased operation in 2013 when dismantling of the track and most of the stations immediately began.
The Harborside stop is the last piece of infrastructure to fall.
The move was part of Mirvac’s 1980s redevelopment of the Harborside Shopping Center on Darling Harbour.
All sections of track and a number of stations along the network have already been decommissioned, with the Harborside stop being the last to be completed in the autumn
The site will make way as Mirvac proceeds with the planned redevelopment of the 1980s Harborside Shopping Center on Darling Harbor
The monorail network was unpopular with every Sydneysider, with one group attempting to stop its construction in the 1980s.
Sydney Citizens Against the Proposed Monorail, which was led by lawyer Michael Mobbs, was founded in 1985 in an attempt to stop the construction of the monorail.
Their campaign included placing advertisements in the newspapers and organizing protests pushing for the proposal to abolish the monorail.
‘QVB yum – Monorail yuk’, ‘No monorail’, ‘Stop the Monsterail’ and ‘Who needs a monorail? I have feet!’ belonged to the various slogans.
Ita Buttrose, Peter Carey, Leo Schofield, Jim McClelland, Mike Carlton, Nick Greiner and Patrick White were some of the high-profile Australians who joined the cause.
White said the monorail was “one of many autocratic farces perpetuated by the powerful against our citizens.”
Sydney Mayor Clover Moore even expressed her disapproval when she was an Independent Member of Parliament at the time.
A spokesperson for Mirvac said the company had no intention of keeping the Harborside station. news.com.au reported.
“We have received approval for the demolition of the Harborside monorail station in 2021, and the monorail is not part of the redevelopment of the site,” he said.
