In 1932, The NSW Railways installed the first escalators for the deep underground stations at Wynyard and Town Hall. After 60 years of operation, the last wooden escalators in Sydney’s Town Hall and Wynyard were retired. What makes this story unique is that these escalators were the innovative technology of their time and served the city up until 2017. The beautifully designed ‘moving stairs’ (as they were once known) had transported hundreds of thousands of people from the underground platforms for over half a century.
The Town Hall and Wynyard escalators were historically significant because they were 6 of the 7 oldest operating wooden escalators used in the railway system in the world; the last one still in operation is in San Jose Station in Buenos Aires. They were an active and well-preserved connection to our past, thanks to the Sydney Trains maintenance crews who kept them running safely beyond their lifespan. Due to modern safety and accessibility standards, the decision was made to remove the historic escalators and replace them with modern versions. At the same time there was a desire to capture and celebrate their heritage value.
