After a visit on 8 December 1871, to investigate possible routes for the extension of the line from Goulburn, Whitton remarked that "to bring the station to North Yass would increase the length of the line by about three quarters of a mile; that the cost would be considerably more than I had recommended, probably £30,000 or £40,000 for works alone; and that in an engineering point of view [a] divergence to North Yass could not be entertained.

[2] Despite continuous objections, none of Whitton's working plans or other Government surveys were able to find a suitable route for the railway to pass through Yass.

Instead, the present route from Gunning to Bowning was chosen which passed four kilometres to the north, with the station opening on 3 July 1876 as Yass.

Yass Junction is an important site with the earliest surviving station building on the main southern railway (though altered).

The site illustrates the changes from early construction with single track operation to duplication and the need for a second platform with additional facilities including refreshment rooms.