The Goods Line, Ultimo

The Goods Line is a lively public thoroughfare and elevated linear park running along a disused railway corridor from Railway Square to Darling Harbour in inner city Sydney.

Adaptive re-use of the former goods line has created a vibrant civic spine connecting neighbourhoods, visitor destinations, and cultural institutions in the heart of one of the most densely populated areas of the city.

With multiple entry points along its length, the project stitches together previously disconnected precincts, places, and infrastructure, and contributes a diversity of multifunctional spaces to the public realm.
 

The Goods Line forms part of a two-decade vision for a pedestrian network extending from Central Station to Darling Harbour – helping to establish Darling Harbour as an important cultural and tourist destination. Once Australia’s first railway, the goods line was used for freight transportation until the mid-1980s.

The new linear park is now a conduit for pedestrians as well as cyclists. It caters for residents, tourists, workers, and students, and links cultural and educational institutions including the ABC Ultimo Centre, Powerhouse Museum, University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and Sydney TAFE.

A core factor in the successful delivery of the project was the early engagement and participation of multiple institutions and authorities. This fostered early and ongoing ownership of the project by all parties involved. While the initiative was delivered by Property NSW, stakeholders including TransGrid, Sydney Trains, UTS, Powerhouse Museum, Sydney TAFE, the ABC and the City of Sydney were involved from the outset.

The park design emphasises movement as well as encouraging rest and respite. A carefully crafted series of spaces have been configured, including elevated lawns, gardens, play spaces, and seating areas with communal tables. These multifunctional spaces can be used for events and festivals as well as the everyday experiences of gathering, play, and study.
 

The old rail tracks and other found objects, such as the signal box, have been retained and incorporated into the design, paying homage to the past.

One of the Goods Line’s most significant civic contributions is the way it has stitched together disconnected neighbourhoods. The design team helped shape an expanded vision for the project, identifying the opportunity to maximize connectivity by prioritising the east–west access to the site.

The creation of multiple entries across and along the length of The Goods Line through a network of paths, steps, and ramps, not only connects key destinations to the north and south, but links adjacent neighbourhoods in Chinatown and Ultimo previously separated by the freight line. 
 

What was once a conduit for trade has been reinterpreted to carry the precious cargo of a thriving neighbourhood: culture, creativity and community.

Sacha Coles, Project lead designer and Director, ASPECT Studios

Implementing the scheme, and harnessing its full potential, depended on the support and collaboration of a diverse group of stakeholders, including multiple landowners. A high level of understanding and cooperation was achieved from the outset due to having a strong design vision – the result of close, creative collaboration between the scheme’s architects and landscape architects.

The Goods Line is an excellent example of how a generous program of user experiences can work together to attract a continuous flow of visitors to a site that was previously poorly connected to the mainstream commercial and cultural activity of the city. With a growing urban population, and increasing competition for space and resources, the multifunctional, connected, pedestrian-focused, and ecological potential of this infrastructure network will be increasingly valued.