Roads & TransportHudson FarrFri 04 Sep 26
New Melton Station Completes Ahead of 50pc Boost to Rail Capacity
The latest project in Melbourne’s rail infrastructure program has opened in the city’s west as the elevated Melton Station replaces boom gates, paving the way for higher-capacity rail services.
The station replaced an at-grade crossing arrangement with a four-platform elevated structure. Passengers now cross the rail line via an underpass with lift and stair access, rather than at boom gates.
The upgrade takes the statewide total of removed level crossings to 94 since the project began in 2015.
The program aims to remove 110 level crossings will be removed by 2033, with the Cranbourne, Pakenham, Lilydale, Sunbury, Werribee and Frankston lines to be level-crossing free.
Two crossings at Melton and Truganina were removed in the lead-up to the opening. Together, the four crossings carried more than 73,000 vehicles a day, with delays of up to half an hour at the boom gates during the morning peak.
The new station was designed with capacity in mind. Platforms were lengthened to accommodate nine-car VLocity trains, which are expected to begin running to Melton from next year—a move the state said would lift capacity on peak services by 50 per cent.
Two new rail bridges now carry trains over Exford and Coburns roads, removing conflict points between road and rail traffic in the area.
Coburns Road will be closed at the rail crossing from September 6 to September 24 to allow crews to dismantle redundant rail infrastructure and rebuild the road, with train services operating from the new station.
The station precinct will also include a seven-bay bus interchange to support better connections between train and bus services.
Car parking at the station is to be expanded to more than 900 spaces, while landscaping in surrounding areas will add more than 670 native trees and 180,000 native plants, shrubs and grasses.
The station’s design anticipates the Melton line’s electrification, with longer platforms ultimately allowing Metro services to operate from two of the platforms. Electric trains will be stabled at a new facility at Cobblebank.
Finalisations for the design, scope and costs of the line’s electrification have been backed by a $152.7 million investment from the Victorian and Australian governments.
Currently, the Melton line is operated by diesel regional V/Line trains.
The station opening comes as a broader pipeline of infrastructure investment at Melton rolls out, including the under-construction Melton Hospital, a series of road upgrades and six new schools being built in the area.
