Carlingford, New South Wales

Carlingford (Postcode 2118, S33.777 E151.048), known affectionately to residents as "Carlo", is a suburb located approximately 22 km north-west of central Sydney, Australia, covering an area of 7.9 square kilometres on the south-eastern outskirts of the Hills District. It is one of the busier suburbs within the Hills with many businesses available in the large town centre. To the east lies Epping; to the north lie Beecroft and West Pennant Hills; to the west lies North Rocks; to the south lie North Parramatta, Oatlands and Telopea.

Contents

1 History and urban character 2 Population statistics 2.1 Place of birth 2.2 Language spoken 2.3 Religion 3 Commerce 4 Politics 5 Transport 5.1 Public transport 5.2 Roads 6 Schools 6.1 Public primary schools 6.2 Private primary schools 6.3 Public high schools 7 Churches 8 Telecommunications 9 Other infrastructure 10 References

History and urban character

Originally, the area of Carlingford was called Mobbs Hill, named after the ex-convict settler William Mobbs, who is credited for bringing oranges to Australia. Carlingford received its current name after a vote in 1886 by the residents. The name was suggested by Frederick Cox after he heard one of his employees describe similarities between Mobbs Hill and the town of Carlingford, located in the east of Ireland. Carlingford was also probably named in honour of The Lord Carlingford.

The area was settled in the mid-1800s and, at the time, was an agricultural area on the outskirts of Sydney. Like much of the Hills District, Carlingford was a significant orange-growing area for the city. The Carlingford train line, was the major route of transportation for agricultural produce from the area. Carlingford Produce, a gardening and agricultural-materials seller located next to the train station, is located in the former train workshops. This store, much like James Ruse Agricultural High School (see below) remain as testaments to the agricultural history of the suburb.

As Sydney rapidly expanded, following World War II, Carlingford underwent rapid urbanisation starting in the late 1960s. The presence of James Ruse Agricultural High School, established in 1959, is a testament to the agricultural history of Carlingford as well as the rapid pace of urbanisation; which soon made the school, and its large farm, somewhat of an anomaly amongst the 1970s- and 1980s-style houses which dominate the suburb. More recently, in the 1990s, the government policy of urban consolidation has seen the development of high-density units and apartment blocks around the town centre and the train station. There have also been redevelopments of older houses into medium-density townhouses, and duplex housing.

In 1961, the K13 memorial was unveiled, and stands as a prominent feature in Carlingford, passed by thousands of motorists along Pennant Hills Road each day.

Population statistics

Australian Bureau of Statistics data from the 2001 census records the population of Carlingford as 19,678 residents, with a gender mix of 49% males and 51% females in line with the rest of the Australian population. (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2002)

Place of birth

• Australia (58.2%)
• China (6.2%)
• Hong Kong (5.6%)
• United Kingdom (3.8%)
• South Korea (2.8%)

Language spoken

• English only (60.4%)
• Chinese
  • Any (18.3%)
  • Cantonese (12.8%)
  • Mandarin (4.8%)
• Korean (3.2%)

Religion

• Christianity
  • Any (65.4%)
  • Catholicism (25.1%)
  • Anglicanism (18.2%)
• No religion (15.7%)
• Hinduism (2.6%)

Commerce

Carlingford has two shopping centres - Carlingford Court, which underwent major reconstruction in the late 1990s, and Carlingford Village, which was also recently redeveloped. Carlingford Court is a typical surburban shopping centre, managed by Lend Lease, and is home to major businesses such as Myer and Fitness First. Carlingford Village is a smaller shopping complex, which has many Asian food outlets, catering more for Chinese people. The Carlingford town centre, located on Pennant Hills Road, also comprises a number of street shops.

There are also several shopping strips elsewhere in Carlingford - near Carlingford station, including the only pub in Carlingford (Carlingford Bowling Club); North Carlingford, on North Rocks Road; north-west Carlingford on Carmen Drive; and south-west Carlingford, in the Kingsdene area, on Felton Rd (West).

Politics

Carlingford falls under the jurisdiction of several Local Government Areas: the City of Parramatta in the south, Hornsby Shire in the north-east, and Baulkham Hills Shire in the north-west. Similarly it falls under several Commonwealth (Berowra, Bennelong, Parramatta) and State (Epping, Baulkham Hills, Parramatta, The Hills) electoral divisions/districts.

The population of Carlingford, as with the rest of the relatively affluent northern Sydney, tend to hold conservative values and this is reflected in the popular vote. Baulkham Hills Shire and Hornsby Shire councils are consistently dominated by conservative councillors. Most of the electoral divisions that Carlingford lies within are safe Liberal seats. The exception is Parramatta City Council, and the electoral division and district of Parramatta - which tend to be marginal seats due to the influence of the ALP -voting populations of southern Sydney which are also part of those electorates. It is interesting that such a distinct demarcation of political-affliations across the Parramatta River occurs.

The Commonwealth Electoral Divisions of Berowra, currently held by The Hon. The Attorney-General Philip Ruddock MP, and Bennelong, currently held by The Hon. The Prime Minister John Winston Howard MP; are both safe or very safe Liberal seats. The Commonwealth Electoral Division of Parramatta, currently held by Ms Julie Owens MP, is nominally a marginal ALP seat; and was only recently regained from the previous Liberal member Ross Cameron in the 2004 election.

The State Electoral Districts of Baulkham Hills, currently held by Mr Wayne Merton MLA; Epping, currently held by Shadow Attorney-General Andrew Tink MLA; and The Hills, currently held by Shadow Environment Minister Mr Michael Richardson MLA; are safe Liberal seats. The State Electoral District of Parramatta, currently held by Ms Tanya Gadiel MLA, is a marginal ALP seat.

Transport

Public transport

Carlingford, as with much of north-west Sydney, has relatively poor public transport infrastructure. In the 2001 census, only 6% of people travelled to work via trains, while 2% used buses.

There are a number of infrequent bus services which pass through Carlingford. Harris Park Transport, a now defunct bus company, used to operate routes 624, 625, 628, and 629 which pass through the suburb. The 630 was operated by Red Arrow, a joint-venture of Harris Park Transport and Westbus. As of February 2005, these former Harris Park services are operated by Sydney Buses (State Transit Authority of New South Wales). Previously route 513 was the only Sydney Buses service through Carlingford. The former 621 and 622 Citybus Direct (owned by Harris Park Transport) routes from Carlingford to the city proved to be uneconomical and were eliminated.

Current bus lines, all operated by Sydney Buses include:

• 513 West Ryde to Carlingford
• 624 Parramatta to Epping via Pennant Hills Rd, Carlingford
• 625 Parramatta to Pennant Hills via Pennant Hills Rd, Carlingford
• 628 Epping to Carlingford
• 629 Epping to North Rocks
• 630 Blacktown to Macquarie Park (in conjunction with Westbus)

CityRail provides an infrequent train service at Carlingford Station, which is the terminus of the Carlingford Line. The Carlingford Line is a mostly single-track line. There is currently only one service in the early morning which connects to the city directly, at other times a train-change at Clyde, is necessary to reach other stations, and consequently the service has a low patronage. As part of the CityRail Clearways Project, a passing loop has been promised to the Carlingford Line with two services per hour all day to become effective in 2010.

Roads

Carlingford suffers from major traffic congestion during morning and afternoon peaks. Because of poor public transport most residents travel to work by cars. In the 2001 census, 60% stated their main method of getting to work was driving their own vehicle. The major north-south national highway through Sydney, the Cumberland Highway, intersects Carlingford in the form of Pennant Hills Road. As well, many motorists commuting from the Hills District and the growing north-west areas of Sydney travel through Carlingford to the city.

The M2 Hills Motorway, part of the yet-to-be-completed Sydney Orbital, runs through northern Carlingford providing a rapid route to the city for those willing to pay the toll. It should be noted that when the M7 Western Orbital Motorway is completed (expected completion in 2006), completing the Sydney Orbital, it will replace the Cumberland Highway as the north-south national highway, relieving much of the traffic congestion on Pennant Hills Road (south of the M2 Hills Motorway).

Schools

Carlingford is the location of a large number of public and private schools. Indeed some residents have chosen to move to Carlingford because of the reputation of the schools there and in nearby suburbs.

Public primary schools

• Carlingford Public School
• Carlingford West Public School
• Murray Farm Public School
• Roselea Public School

Private primary schools

• St. Gerard's School

Public high schools

• Carlingford High School
• Cumberland High School
• James Ruse Agricultural High School (selective)

Churches

As with much of northern Sydney, Carlingford also has a comparatively large number of Christian churches of many denominations. These include:

• Carlingford Baptist Church [1] (http://www.carlingford-baptist.org/)
• Carlingford Uniting Church [2] (http://www.carlingforduca.org.au/)
• St Gerard Majella's Parish (Catholic) [3] (http://www.onlinecatholics.com.au/issue01/benesleuth.php)
• St. Paul's Anglican Church [4] (http://www.stpaulscarlingford.org.au/)
• Iglesia Ni Cristo
• Christian City Church, Carlingford [5] (http://www.ccccarlingford.org.au/about/)
• The Pacific headquarters and Sydney Australia Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. [6] (http://www.ldschurchtemples.com/cgi-bin/pages.cgi?sydney&faq&print)
• Parramatta City Presbyterian Church [7] (http://www.homestead.com/nsw_act/ParramattaCityPresbyterian.html)

Telecommunications

The Carlingford telephone exchange is located at 413 North Rocks Rd. It serves telephony for Carlingford and nearby suburbs such as Dundas Valley, Telopea and North Rocks. The exchange has a Telstra DSLAM installed, allowing residents to subscribe to an ADSL service. A Competitor is also planning to install their own DSLAM, quarter 3 of 2005, providing residents with greater internet access speeds than those offered by Telstra. Most of the surburb is also wired for Telstra and Optus cable, allowing cable TV and Internet to be installed.

The Carlingford telephone exchange handles the following telephone number ranges:

• 88122000-88123999
• 88264000-88265999
• 96140000-96142999
• 98710000-98718999
• 98721000-98729999
• 98731000-98736999

Other infrastructure

Carlingford is the site for one of the major electricity substations in northern Sydney, which is operated by Integral Energy. The same site also houses one of the major communications relay towers in northern Sydney. The importance of these two sites was highlighted by recent security upgrades to the facility following the September 11 attacks in New York. A security guard has also been positioned under the communications tower around-the-clock. This guard has apparently not been supplied with a chair by employers, and instead has been sighted on a chair clearly marked "JR HIGH" (indicating its source from the adjacent James Ruse Agricultural High School).

References

• Australian Bureau of Statistics (2002). Basic community profile: Carlingford (SSC 11446) (http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@census.nsf/4079a1bbd2a04b80ca256b9d00208f92/6f23e832c6e96cadca256bc00014643a!OpenDocument). Retrieved 19 May 2005.