Heidelberg railway station

This article is about the station in Victoria, Australia. For the station in Heidelberg, Germany, see Heidelberg Hauptbahnhof.

Heidelberg
PTV commuter rail station
North-east bound view in September 2022
General information
Location	Studley Road, Heidelberg Victoria 3084 City of Banyule Australia
Coordinates	37°45′26″S145°03′39″E / 37.7571°S 145.0607°E / -37.7571; 145.0607
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Hurstbridge
Distance	14.04 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 (1 island)
Tracks	2
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	300
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	No—steep ramp
Other information
Status	Operational, premium station
Station code	HDB
Fare zone	Myki Zone 1/2 overlap
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	8 May 1888;135 years ago (1888-05-08)
Electrified	July 1921 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2006	801,824 [1]

Preceding station	Metro Trains			Following station
Eaglemont towards Flinders Street		Hurstbridge line		Rosanna towards Hurstbridge

Track layout
Legend to Eaglemont 1 2 Heidelberg Tunnel to Rosanna

Heidelberg railway station is located on the Hurstbridge line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the north-eastern Melbourne suburb of Heidelberg, and opened on 8 May 1888. ^[4]

History

Heidelberg station opened on 8 May 1888, at a time when it was the terminus station on what is now the Hurstbridge line. ^[4] On 1 September 1913, the current island station design officially opened. ^[5]

At one time, there was a goods yard opposite Platform 1. It made way for an extension of the commuter car-park, although the goods shed still exists. At one time, there were three tracks running through the station; two served the island platform, and the third track was the last surviving stabling track. The third track was removed after a period of disuse.

Between 26 January 1942 and 6 February 1942, fourteen trains were modified to become ambulance trains. They ferried returning wounded World War II servicemen from Melbourne to Heidelberg, where ambulances were waiting to collect them. On 3 November 1995, 50 years after the end of the conflict, Vin Heffernan, the member for Ivanhoe, unveiled a plaque at the station to commemorate the role of the station in the war effort. ^[6]

During 1988, the former No. 4 and No. 5 tracks were abolished, along with a number of disc signal posts. ^[7]

In 1992, the station received an enclosed waiting area and ticket facilities, as part of the "Travel Safe" program of the early 1990s. ^[8] At 5am on 5 March 1994, after the signals were upgraded to an electronic system, one of the decommissioned mechanical semaphore signals ("Signal No. 4") was relocated from the Melbourne side of the station, to the car-park opposite Platform 1, for display purposes. Signal No. 4 was first erected for operation at Heidelberg in 1912. ^[9] On 21 June 1996, Heidelberg was upgraded to a premium station. ^[8]

At the 2016/17 Victorian State Budget, $140.2 million was allocated to duplicate the single-track between Heidelberg and Rosanna, and included a second rail tunnel alongside the existing tunnel. ^[10] On 30 April 2018, the project was completed. ^[11]

Platforms and services

Heidelberg has one island platform with two faces. It is served by Hurstbridge line trains. ^[12]

Platform 1:

•   Hurstbridge line   all stations and limited express services to Flinders Street

Platform 2:

•   Hurstbridge line   all stations and limited express services to Macleod, Greensborough, Eltham and Hurstbridge

Transport links

Dysons operates three bus routes via Heidelberg station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  513 : Eltham station – Glenroy station (via Lower Plenty) ^[13]
•  514 : Eltham station – Glenroy station (via Greensborough) ^[14]
•  546 : to Melbourne University (off-peak extension to Queen Victoria Market) ^[15]

Kinetic Melbourne operates one SmartBus route via Heidelberg station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

• SmartBus  903 : Altona station – Mordialloc ^[16]

Ventura Bus Lines operates one route to and from Heidelberg station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  551 : to La Trobe University Bundoora campus ^[17]

References

1. Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Department of Transport
2. Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Philip Mallis
3. Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
4. "Heidelberg". vicsig.net. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
5. "ca. 1913. Heidelberg Railway Station (new)". Item held by Yarra Plenty Regional Library Service - Heidelberg Historical Society. 11 May 2005. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
6. Plaque inside Heidelberg Station
7. "Works". Newsrail . Australian Railway Historical Society. November 1988. p. 346.
8. "Upgrading Eltham to a Premium Station". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1997. pp. 303–315.
9. Sign at Heidelberg Railway Station, Platform 1
10. "Hurstbridge Rail Line upgrade". Public Transport Victoria . Retrieved 15 May 2023.
11. "New Rosanna Station opens, with two level crossings gone for good | Level Crossing Removal Project".
12. "Hurstbridge Line". Public Transport Victoria.
13. "513 Eltham - Glenroy via Lower Plenty". Public Transport Victoria.
14. "514 Eltham - Glenroy via Greensborough". Public Transport Victoria.
15. "546 Heidelberg Station - Melb Uni - Queen Victoria Market via Clifton Hill and Carlton". Public Transport Victoria. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
16. "903 Altona - Mordialloc (SMARTBUS Service)". Public Transport Victoria. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
17. "551 Heidelberg - La Trobe University Interchange". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

• Media related to Heidelberg railway station, Melbourne at Wikimedia Commons
• Melway map at street-directory.com.au