North Melbourne railway station

This article is about the existing above-ground station. For the underground station under construction, see Arden railway station, Melbourne.

North Melbourne
PTV commuter and regional rail station
Southbound view of Platforms 5 and 6, March 2023
General information
Location	Railway Place, West Melbourne, Victoria 3003 City of Melbourne Australia
Coordinates	37°48′23″S144°56′28″E / 37.8063°S 144.9411°E / -37.8063; 144.9411
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains V/Line
Line(s)	Metropolitan: Craigieburn Upfield Sunbury Flemington Racecourse [lower-alpha 1] Werribee Williamstown Regional: Seymour Shepparton (Tocumwal)
Distance	1.68 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	6 (2 side, 2 island)
Tracks	6
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes—step free access
Other information
Status	Operational, premium station
Station code	NME
Fare zone	Myki Zone 1
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	6 October 1859;165 years ago (1859-10-06)
Rebuilt	1974 16 November 2009
Electrified	May 1919 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2006	557,994 [1]

Preceding station	Metro Trains			Following station
Southern Cross or Flagstaff towards Flinders Street		Craigieburn line		Kensington towards Craigieburn
		Upfield line		Macaulay towards Upfield
		Sunbury line		Footscray towards Sunbury
Southern Cross towards Flinders Street		Flemington Racecourse line		Showgrounds towards Flemington Racecourse
				Showgrounds Terminus
Southern Cross towards Frankston via  Flinders Street		Werribee line Express services		Footscray towards Werribee
		Werribee line		South Kensington towards Werribee
		Williamstown line		South Kensington towards Williamstown
Preceding station	V/Line			Following station
Southern Cross Terminus		Seymour line Weekdays only		Broadmeadows towards Seymour
				Essendon Peak service only towards Seymour
		Shepparton line 2 weekday peak services		Broadmeadows towards Shepparton

North Melbourne railway station is a commuter and regional railway station on the suburban Craigieburn, Flemington Racecourse, Sunbury, Upfield, Werribee and Williamstown lines; and the regional Seymour line, part of the Melbourne and Victorian railway networks. It serves the inner north-western suburb of West Melbourne, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. North Melbourne is a ground level premium station and major junction, featuring six platforms: two side platforms, and two island platforms with two faces each. It opened on 6 October 1859, with the current station provided in 2009. ^{[4] [5]}

The station is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. ^[6]

History

The first railway through the site of North Melbourne station was today's Williamstown line, and the first section of the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company line (to Sunbury), which both opened on 13 January 1859. On 6 October 1859, the first passenger station, with two platforms, was opened, and on 9 June 1886, the present six-platform station opened. ^[7]

The new station was of free classical architecture. Red brick was used, with cream brick banding, along with verandas and cast iron lace work. ^[6] As built in 1886, North Melbourne had six platforms, with four platform buildings containing ladies' toilets and a ladies' waiting room. The main booking office, waiting room and station master's office were near the ramp to Platform 1, and the men's toilets and porters' offices were located under the ramps themselves. ^[6]

In December 1973, the suburban train stabling yard to the north of the station opened, as part of the City Loop project. ^[8] The footbridge that links the sidings with the Macaulay maintenance centre was also provided around that time. ^[9] In 1974, the station buildings on the northern concourse were provided ^[6] and, in the 1980s, as part of the construction works for the City Loop, the ramps to Platforms 1 and 2 were altered, and the platform extended at the down end.

In May 1995, a washing plant and additional sidings in Melbourne Yard, located to the west of the station, were provided, as part of the Jolimont Yard rationalisation. ^[10] On 19 July 1996, North Melbourne was upgraded to a premium station. ^[11]

In May 2006, it was announced that the station was to be redeveloped as part of a $36 million project. ^[12] Work included a new main entrance at the up (southern) end of the station, with escalators, stairs and lifts installed for quicker access to other platforms and to cater for disabled passengers. Work started in May 2007, and was completed on 16 November 2009. ^{[13] [14]} To aid construction and avoid disruption to train passengers, a crash deck was erected over the tracks, to allow trains to run normally underneath while building work continued overhead. ^[5]

In March 2008, bus route 401 began operating from North Melbourne to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and University of Melbourne in Carlton and Parkville, removing the need for passengers to those destinations to travel via the City Loop. ^{[15] [16]}

After December 2013, V/Line Geelong and Warrnambool services no longer stopped at the station, due to the opening of the first section of the Regional Rail Link (RRL) between Southern Cross and South Kensington. The line runs to the west of North Melbourne, but no platforms were provided. ^[17] On 11 July 2014, Ballarat, Ararat, Bendigo, Swan Hill and Echuca line services also ceased stopping at North Melbourne, having moved to the RRL tracks. ^[18]

In November 2017, the Victorian State Government announced that North Melbourne would be renamed West Melbourne, to better reflect its geographical location, and to allow one of the new stations constructed as part of the Metro Tunnel project to be named North Melbourne. ^[19] The change was abandoned in 2020, with the Metro Tunnel station being named Arden instead. ^[20]

Platforms, facilities and services

North Melbourne has six platforms: two side platforms and two island platforms with four faces. It is served by Craigieburn, Sunbury, Upfield, Werribee and Williamstown line trains, ^{[21] [22] [23] [24] [25]} as well as V/Line Seymour and Shepparton line services. ^{[26] [27] [28]}

The main station entrance is at the southern end of the platforms, at the intersection of Adderley and Dryburgh Streets. The station building contains the main booking office, public toilets and a kiosk, with platform access via escalators and lifts. At the north end, the original asphalt ramps link all six platforms, with Platforms 2 through to 6 having heritage-listed verandas and brick waiting rooms.

At the north end of the station are 1970s-era brown brick buildings, built over the former Dynon Road overpass, which include public toilets and the former railway parcels office. Until November 2009, that building was also the main exit to Ireland Street and Railway Place, and contained the booking office and a kiosk, until those facilities were moved to the new concourse at the south end. The north end also has an exit leading west to the Melbourne Yard rail freight terminal, which is not open to public access. ^[29]

Platform 1:

•   Craigieburn line   all stations services to Flinders Street
•   Upfield line   all stations services to Flinders Street
•   Flemington Racecourse line   services to Southern Cross (special event days only)
•   Seymour line   weekday V/Line services to Southern Cross (set down only)
•   Shepparton line   two weekday peak-hour V/Line services to Southern Cross (set down only)

Platform 2:

•   Craigieburn line   all stations services to Craigieburn
•   Upfield line   all stations services to Upfield
•   Flemington Racecourse line   express services to Showgrounds and/or Flemington Racecourse (special event days only)
•   Seymour line   weekday V/Line services to Seymour (pick up only)
•   Shepparton line   two weekday peak-hour V/Line services to Shepparton (pick up only)

Platform 3:

•   Sunbury line   all stations services to Flinders Street
•   Seymour line   weekday peak-hour V/Line services to Southern Cross (set down only)

Platform 4:

•   Sunbury line   all stations and limited express services to Watergardens and Sunbury

Platform 5:

•   Werribee line   all stations services to Flinders Street and Frankston
•   Williamstown line   all stations services to Flinders Street and Frankston
•   Craigieburn line   select services to Flinders Street
•   Flemington Racecourse line   all stations services to Flinders Street (special event days only)

Platform 6:

•   Werribee line   all stations and limited express services to Laverton and Werribee
•   Williamstown line   all stations services to Williamstown
•   Craigieburn line   select services to Craigieburn
•   Flemington Racecourse line   express services to Showgrounds and/or Flemington Racecourse (special event days only)

Track layout

v t e North Melbourne railway station track layout
Legend
to Southern Cross to Flagstaff 1 2 4 6 ? to South Dynon Rail Yard 3 5 to Macaulay Moonee Ponds Creek CityLink CityLink to North Dynon Rail Yard to Kensington to South Kensington
broad gauge, electrified broad gauge, non-electrified dual gauge, non-electrified standard gauge, non-electrified

Station diagram

Schematic diagram of the station

Transport links

Transit Systems Victoria operates one bus route to and from North Melbourne station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  401 : to University of Melbourne ^[30]

Gallery

• 
  Northbound view from Platform 6, May 2007
• 
  Construction work on the new southern concourse, February 2008
• 
  Station forecourt and entrance, November 2009
• 
  Northbound view from Platform 3, August 2017

Notes

1. Special events only

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. "North Melbourne". vicsig.net. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
5. "North Melbourne Station". Rail Geelong. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
6. "North Melbourne Railway Station Complex (listing VICH1582)". Australia Heritage Places Inventory. Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities . Retrieved 21 May 2008.
7. Turton, Keith W (1973). Six And A Half Inches From Destiny. The first hundred years of the Melbourne-Wodonga Railway 1873–1973. Australian Railway Historical Society. p. 86. ISBN   0-85849-012-9.
8. SE Dornan & RG Henderson (1979). Electric Railways of Victoria. Australian Electric Traction Society. p. 93. ISBN   0-909459-06-1.
9. "Way & Works". Newsrail . Australian Railway Historical Society. February 1974. p. 43.
10. Daryl Dedman (October 1998). "Farewell to Melbourne Yard". Newsrail. series567railvideo.com.au. Archived from the original on 4 January 2006. Retrieved 11 August 2008.
11. "Upgrading Eltham to a Premium Station". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1997. pp. 303–315.
12. "Station to get $36m revamp". news.com.au. 15 May 2006. Retrieved 21 May 2008.^{[ dead link ]}
13. "Public transport – Metropolitan railway station projects". doi.vic.gov.au. Archived from the original on 7 October 2006. Retrieved 21 May 2008.
14. Concrete Concepts Archived 13 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia
15. "Media Release: New Shuttle Service Provides Vital Link for Commuters". dpc.vic.gov.au. 3 March 2008. Archived from the original on 20 July 2008. Retrieved 21 May 2008.
16. North Melbourne Shuttle Service a Hit with Commuters Archived 13 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine Minister for Public Transport 13 March 2008
17. Changes to Geelong line services from Sunday 22 December 2013 Archived 13 April 2014 at the Wayback Machine Public Transport Victoria
18. Major Regional Rail Link signalling works planned for June and July Premier of Victoria 13 June 2014
19. Lillebuen, Steve; Jacks, Timna (29 November 2017). "Metro Tunnel: New train station names revealed". The Age. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
20. New North Melbourne Metro Tunnel station renamed due to emergency fears Herald Sun 25 January 2020
21. "Craigieburn Line". Public Transport Victoria.
22. "Sunbury Line". Public Transport Victoria.
23. "Upfield Line". Public Transport Victoria.
24. "Werribee Line". Public Transport Victoria.
25. "Williamstown Line". Public Transport Victoria.
26. Seymour – Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
27. Bendigo – Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
28. Shepparton – Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
29. Connex Melbourne (16 October 2009). "News: North Melbourne Station – Closure of footbridge". connexmelbourne.com.au. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
30. "401 North Melbourne Station - Melbourne University Loop via Royal Melbourne Hospital". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

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