The port city of Bunbury is the third largest city in Western Australia after Mandurah and Perth the state capital. It is situated 175 kilometres (109 mi) south of Perth's central business district (CBD). The port services the farming and timber industries of the south west originally connect via an extensive rail network.
Bunbury is situated 175 kilometres south of Perth, near the mouth of the Collie River at the southern end of the Leschenault Inlet, which opens to Koombana Bay and the larger Geographe Bay which extends southwards to Cape Naturaliste.
[edit] History
The first registered sighting of Bunbury was by French explorer Captain Louis de Freycinet from his ship the Casuarina in 1803. He named the area Port Leschenault after the expedition's botanist, Leschenault de la Tour. The bay was named Geographe after another ship in the fleet.
In 1829, Dr Alexander Collie and Lieutenant Preston explored the area of Bunbury on land. Later Lieutenant Governor Sir James Stirling visited the area and a military post was established. The area was renamed Bunbury by the Governor in recognition of Lieutenant Henry William St. Pierre Bunbury (1812-75), who developed the very difficult inland route from Pinjarra to Bunbury.[2]
[edit] Rail transport
See also: Wollaston, Western Australia#Transport
The Pinjarra to Picton Junction railway line was completed in 1893, connecting Bunbury to Perth, and also to the coal and mineral deposits and agricultural areas to the north and east. The famous railway roundhouse and marshalling yards located at what is now Bunbury Centrepoint shopping centre were a vital service centre for the steam engines of the day. The train station served as the terminal for the longest lasting named service in Western Australia - the Australind passenger train between Perth, transporting its first passengers on 24 November 1947 and connecting to a newly established bus network distributing passengers all over the South West.
By 1983, the railway into the city (closely following Blair Street's alignment) was considered an eyesore by the local council and developers, who wished to take advantage of the newly elected Burke Labor government's pledges to make Bunbury an alternative city to Perth.[citation needed] A new station was constructed at Wollaston 4 km to the southeast, and the last train to use the old station departed Bunbury on 28 May 1985 with the new terminal commencing operations the following day. The railway land was then sold and Blair Street realigned. The Australind passenger service was then substantially upgraded in 1987.
At present there are two departures and two arrivals at Wollaston every day of the week. The former train station is now the Bunbury Visitor Centre and is the main bus station for Bunbury City Transit services. It is also a stop for Transwa and South West Coach Lines bus services.
The local government of the City of Bunbury has a population of 32,499. Bunbury has sister-city relationships with Setagaya, Japan, and Jiaxing, China. In 2007 Bunbury was recognised as Australia's fastest growing city for 2005/06 period by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).[6][7] Bunbury's climate is similar to that of Western Australia's capital Perth.
Bunbury
Bunbury's lighthouse and Marlston Hill's lookout tower
Location: Western Australia
Height: meters
Focal Height: Metres
Intensity: cd
Range: nautical miles
The Bunbury Tower, often called the "Milk Carton" for its distinctive shape and blue-and-white colours, is the major feature of the city centre's skyline. It was built in 1983 by businessman Alan Bond. Also prominent are the old lighthouse and lookout tower in the Marlston Hill district, which has been a focus of the city's cultural and commercial growth since the late 1990s.
Bunbury is the home of the Golden West Network, a regional television network broadcasting to the state of Western Australia. GWN had its origins in Bunbury as Channel 3 in the late 1960s, and then purchased other stations from Kalgoorlie and Geraldton, as well as launching a satellite service in 1986 to form the current network. Bunbury houses the network headquarters and production facilities, with the Channel 3 transmitter located at Mt Lennard approximately 25 km to the east.
Regional television station WIN can also be received in Bunbury. WIN Television maintains an office and news bureau, however the station itself is not based there.
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