Melton railway station, Melbourne

Melton
PTV regional rail station
Station building on Platform 2, August 2006
General information
Location	Staughton Street, Melton South, Victoria 3338 City of Melton Australia
Coordinates	37°42′12″S 144°34′21″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	V/Line
Line(s)	Ballarat Ararat Maryborough (Ararat)
Distance	37.32 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 side
Tracks	2
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	167
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Status	Operational, staffed
Station code	MEL
Fare zone	Myki Zone 2
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	2 April 1884; 140 years ago (1884-04-02)
Passengers
2013–2014	557,957[1]
2014–2015	588,252[1]  5.42%
2015–2016	660,431[1]  12.27%
2016–2017	726,339[1]  9.97%
2017–2018	Not measured[1]
2018–2019	827,850[1]  13.97%
2019–2020	653,450[1]  21.07%
2020–2021	326,100[1]  50.09%
Services
Preceding station V/Line Following station Cobblebank towards Southern Cross Ballarat line Bacchus Marsh towards Wendouree Ballarat line (Melton line) Bacchus Marsh Terminus Terminus Ararat line Bacchus Marsh towards Ararat Maryborough line One daily service Bacchus Marsh One-way operation
Location Melton Location within Melbourne

Melton railway station is a regional railway station on the Ararat line, part of the Victorian railway network. It serves the outer-western suburb of Melton South, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Melton Station is a ground level premium station, featuring two side platforms. It opened on 2 April 1884.

The station is planned to be rebuilt by 2026 as part of the Level Crossing Removal Project.

History

19th century

Melton Station opened when the railway line from Braybrook Junction (Sunshine) was extended to the town. Like the town itself, the station was named after Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire, England.[2][3]

In 1886, the line was extended westward to Parwan and, being on a single track section, the station was the site of a crossing loop from that time. By 1889, the station had an interlocked signal box, single passenger platform, and a three-track yard. There was a goods shed opposite the passenger platform.[4]

20th century

In 1962, flashing light signals were provided at the Exford Road level crossing, located nearby in the up direction from the station.[5] In 1987, the yard was rationalised, being reduced to a main line and crossing loop. Boom barriers were provided in 1990, and a second platform was added in 1991.[6] In 1998, the station building was refurbished.

21st century

In 2005, as part of the Regional Fast Rail project, control of the signals was transferred to the Ballarat signal box.[7] The station retains the lever frame for historical purposes.

As part of the Regional Rail Revival project, 18 km of track was duplicated between the Deer Park West junction and Melton.[8][9] The duplication was completed in late 2019, coinciding with the opening of the newly-built Cobblebank Station.[5][10][11]

Future

On 6 October 2022, the Andrews Government announced that four level crossings will be removed in Melton and Truganina by the Level Crossing Removal Project. As part of these removals, Melton Station will be rebuilt by 2026.[12][13]

Throughout 2024, concept designs for the new Melton Station were released.[14] The rebuilt station will include four platforms; Platforms 2 and 3 as an island platform with two faces, and Platforms 1 and 4 as side platforms.[15] The platforms will be long enough to accommodate 9-carriage V/Line VLocity DMUs in the future, set to be introduced to the line by 2028.[16][17]

Electrification and quadruplication of the Ararat line up to Melton was announced by the Andrews Government as part of the Western Rail Plan. In 2023, it was reported that quadruplication of the line had been cut, and there is no current plan to electrify the line.[18]

Platforms and services

Melton has two side platforms. It is served by V/Line Ballarat and Ararat line trains.[19][20]

Platform 1:

•  Ballarat line  services to Southern Cross
•  Ararat line  services to Southern Cross
•  Maryborough line  one daily service to Southern Cross

Platform 2:

•  Ballarat line  services to Bacchus Marsh and Wendouree
•  Ararat line  services to Ararat

Transport links

Transit Systems Victoria operates six bus routes to and from Melton station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  453 : to Melton[21]
•  454 : to Cobblebank station[22]
•  455 : to Micasa Rise/Roslyn Park (Harkness)[23]
•  457 : to Melton[24]
•  458 : to Kurunjang[25]
•  459 : to Arnolds Creek (Melton West)[26]

References

1. Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Archived 17 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Philip Mallis
2. "Melton". Victorian Places. Archived from the original on 25 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
3. First, Jamie (7 January 2014). "The A-Z story of Melbourne's suburbs". Herald Sun. Archived from the original on 26 December 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
4. "Victorian Station Histories - Melton" (PDF). www.vrhistory.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 16 May 2008. Retrieved 26 May 2008.
5. "Melton". vicsig.net. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
6. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society (Victorian Division). October 1991. p. 338.
7. "Melton - Interlocking Information". vicsig.net. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
8. Minister for Public Transport (1 March 2017). "$518 Million Ballarat Line Upgrade Released To Market". Premier of Victoria website. Archived from the original on 19 April 2017. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
9. "Ballarat Line Upgrade". Rail Projects Victoria. 2 February 2019. Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 2 February 2019.
10. "Cobblebank Station opening community event". Victoria's Big Build. 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
11. "Celebrating Cobblebank Station opening". Victoria's Big Build. 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
12. Build, Victoria's Big (6 October 2022). "Making Melton level crossing-free". Victoria’s Big Build. Archived from the original on 6 October 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2022.
13. "Fast-tracking level crossing removals". Victoria's Big Build. 7 June 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
14. "New Melton Station designs as part of massive upgrades". Victoria's Big Build. 23 March 2024. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
15. "Final designs for Melton level crossing removals". Victoria's Big Build. 2 October 2024. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
16. Build, Victoria’s Big (26 June 2023). "Fast tracking level crossing removals in Melton". Victoria’s Big Build. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
17. "Melton level crossing removals". Engage Victoria. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
18. "Confusion and plummeting confidence in rail promises for regional Victoria". ABC News. 5 August 2023. Retrieved 22 October 2024.
19. Ballarat - Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
20. Ararat - Melbourne Public Transport Victoria
21. "453 Melton - Melton Station via Brookfield". Public Transport Victoria.
22. 454 Melton Station to Cobblebank Station Archived 24 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine Public Transport Victoria
23. "455 Micasa Rise-Roslyn Park - Melton Station". Public Transport Victoria.
24. "457 Melton - Melton Station via Melton West". Public Transport Victoria.
25. "458 Kurunjang - Melton Station". Public Transport Victoria.
26. "459 Arnolds Creek to Melton Station via Westlake". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

• Victorian Railway Stations gallery
• Melway map at street-directory.com.au