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Belgrave line

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Supt. of Printing (talk | contribs) at 03:50, 23 February 2023 (→20th century: There is reasonable doubt the line was officially reopened, but rather, services were operated on the officially-closed section to Belgrave.). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Belgrave
Belgrave station, the terminus of the Belgrave line, which provides an interchange with heritage railway Puffing Billy.
Overview
Connecting linesLilydale line, Gembrook line
Former connectionsGembrook line at Upper Ferntree Gully
Stations8 (after Ringwood)
Service
TypeMelbourne suburban service
SystemMetro Trains Melbourne
Rolling stockX'Trapolis 100
History
Commenced1888 (From Ringwood)
Completed1889 to Upper Ferntree Gully; 1900 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) narrow gauge through Belgrave to Gembrook; 1962 1,600 mm (5 ft 3 in) broad gauge to Belgrave
Closed1954 narrow gauge Upper Ferntree Gully to Gembrook
Reopened1962 broad gauge Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave
Technical
Line length41.8 km (26.0 mi)
Number of tracksDouble track to Ferntree Gully, single track with crossing loops beyond

The Belgrave railway line is a commuter rail line operating between Flinders Street in the Melbourne central business district and Belgrave, through the eastern suburbs of Melbourne, including Richmond, Cremorne, Burnley, Hawthorn, Hawthorn East, Camberwell, Canterbury, Surrey Hills, Mont Albert, Box Hill, Blackburn, Nunawading, Mitcham, Ringwood, Heathmont, Bayswater, Boronia, Ferntree Gully, Upper Ferntree Gully, Upwey, Tecoma and Belgrave. It is part of the Melbourne rail network, operated by Metro Trains Melbourne.

Beyond Belgrave, the narrow-gauge line has been restored as the Puffing Billy Railway, which runs to the original terminus of Gembrook.

History

19th century

The line from Ringwood to Upper Ferntree Gully was opened in December 1889. A narrow-gauge 762 mm (2 ft 6 in) line was opened from there to Gembrook in December 1900, the second of four experimental narrow-gauge lines built by the Victorian Railways.

20th century

In 1921, the narrow-gauge section from Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave was converted to automatic signalling, the first such instance on single track in the Southern Hemisphere.[1] This section reverted to Staff and Ticket safeworking in 1930.

Electrification of the railway to Upper Ferntree Gully was implemented in November 1925.

Following a landslide in 1953, the narrow-gauge line was formally closed in April 1954, although services resumed as far as Belgrave for some "farewell specials" and then for the Puffing Billy Preservation Society until services again ceased in February 1958.

The line was partly duplicated between Bayswater and Lower Ferntree Gully (now Ferntree Gully) in February 1957.

The narrow-gauge line to Belgrave had been closed so that the line could be rebuilt as part of the suburban electrified system. The new, broad-gauge, electrified extension opened in February 1962. It initially operated on the Staff and Ticket system, but was converted to automatic signalling in March 1964, with the section from Ferntree Gully to Upper Ferntree Gully being converted the following day.

Ringwood to Bayswater was converted to automatic signalling in June 1974, as was Bayswater to Ferntree Gully in July 1977. In December 1982, Ringwood to Bayswater was duplicated.

The Comeng trains were introduced to the Melbourne railway system in 1981. Initially, along with the Belgrave line, they were only allowed to operate on the Alamein, Dandenong, Glen Waverley and Lilydale lines, due to the width of the trains (3.05 metres).[2]

21st century

Bayswater station was rebuilt in 2017, with the project accompanying the removal of the Mountain Highway and Scoresby Road railway crossings in 2016.[3]

On 4 April 2016, plans to potentially run a regular revenue Tait set service on the Belgrave line was announced. This came following La Trobe MP Jason Wood's push for the idea as part of the greater "Puffing Billy master plan". The Tait service would be aimed at tourists visiting Puffing Billy. In November 2016, La Trobe MP Jason Wood committed $1 million to restoring a Tait set currently stored at Newport workshops. The Tait set service is expected to originate at Flinders Street station as a direct service to Belgrave bypassing the City Loop.[4]

Ringwood–Belgrave Rail Trail

Future

Level Crossing Removal Project

Network and operations

Services

A variety of stopping patterns operate on the Belgrave railway line.[5] As the line shares track between Flinders Street and Ringwood with the Lilydale railway line, double frequencies is often provided on this section. Similar service patterns are replicated on the Lilydale railway line. Additional service is provided by the Alamein railway line between Camberwell and Flinders Street during peak hours.

City Loop

All weekday morning inbound services operate via the City Loop to Flinders Street in an anticlockwise direction. Outbound services travel direct to Richmond. On weekday afternoons, all inbound services travel direct to Flinders Street. Most outbound services travel via the Loop on their way out. Outbound local trains will travel direct to Richmond during this time. On weekends, inbound services travel direct to Flinders Street before running via the Loop on their way out.

Night Network services run direct between Flinders Street and Richmond and do not travel via the City Loop.

Local

Trains stop all stations between Belgrave and Flinders Street except for East Richmond. During peak hour, local trains typically operate between Blackburn, Ringwood and Flinders Street. These trains will usually stop at East Richmond. Trains on the Alamein line provide additional local service during peak hours between Camberwell and Flinders Street.

On weekends, only local service is provided with trains stopping at all stations. A few trains may skip East Richmond. Travel time between Belgrave and Flinders Street is around 1 hour and 14 minutes via the City Loop and 1 hour and 5 minutes direct.

A shuttle service is operated between Ringwood and Belgrave during early mornings and late at night.

  • Every 30 minutes to Belgrave during daytime on weekdays
  • Every 15 minutes between Flinders Street and Ringwood during daytime on weekdays
  • Every 20 minutes to Belgrave during daytime on weekends
  • Every 10 minutes between Flinders Street and Ringwood during daytime on weekends
  • Every hour (Night Network)

Express

There are two primary express patterns operating on the line. Trains operating the slower express service will stop at Camberwell and Glenferrie between Richmond and Box Hill. Some trains may skip/pass Glenferrie.

Trains operating the faster express service do not make any stops between Box Hill and Richmond, but some trains may make an additional stop at Surrey Hills. The faster express services travel between Box Hill and Richmond in 13 minutes, whilst a local train will take 24 minutes. Express services operate exclusively during peak hour, in the peak direction of travel, and will always travel via the City Loop.

Additionally, limited express trains operate express between Richmond and Camberwell with some services making an additional stop at Glenferrie.

Express trains operate only during weekdays.

  • Every 30 Minutes during the day on Weekdays
  • Every 10-15 Minutes during Peak Hours on Average

Stopping patterns

Operators

Route

Map
Interactive map of Belgrave line in eastern Melbourne (click to view)

The Belgrave line forms a mostly curved route from the Melbourne central business district to its terminus in Belgrave. The route is 41.8 kilometres (26.0 mi) long and is predominantly doubled tracked, however between Flinders Street station and Richmond, the track is widened to 12 tracks, narrowing to 4 tracks between Richmond and Burnley before narrowing to 3 tracks between Burnley and Box Hill. Finally, the line narrows to two tracks between Box Hill and Ferntree Gully before narrowing to a single track to its terminus.[6] After Ferntree Gully passing loops and island platforms are present at Upper Ferntree Gully, Upwey, and Belgrave. After departing from its terminus at Flinders Street, the Belgrave line traverses both flat and hilly country with some curves (more towards the end of the line) and fairly minimal earthworks for most of the line. Sections of the line have been elevated or lowered into a cutting to eliminate level crossings.[7] Despite some removals, there are a small number of level crossings still present with no current plans to remove them.

The line follows the same alignment as the Alamein, Glen Waverley, and Lilydale lines with the four services splitting onto different routes at Burnley. The Alamein, Belgrave, and Lilydale services continue till the Alamein line splits off at Camberwell, with the two services continuing together till Ringwood. After departing Ringwood station, the Belgrave line heads south with the Lilydale line heading in an eastern direction.[8] Almost all of the rail line goes through built-up suburbs, however, the rail line becomes peri-urban towards its terminus in Belgrave.[8]

Stations

The line serves 31 stations across 49 kilometres (30 mi) of track. The stations are a mix of elevated, lowered, underground, and ground level designs. Underground stations are present in the City Loop and Box Hill, with the majority of elevated and lowered stations being constructed as part of level crossing removals.[9][10]

Station Accessibility Opened Terrain Train connections Other connections
Flinders Street Yes—step free access 1854[11] Lowered
16 connections
 Trams Buses
Southern Cross 1859[11] Ground level
27 connections
 Trams Buses Coaches
Flagstaff 1985[11] Underground
10 connections
 Trams
Melbourne Central 1981[11] Trams Buses
Parliament 1983[11] Trams
Richmond No—steep ramp 1859[12] Elevated
8 connections
 Trams Buses
East Richmond Yes—step free access 1860[12] Ground level
3 connections
 Trams
Burnley No—steep ramp 1880[12]
Hawthorn 1881[12] Lowered
2 Connnections
 Trams Buses
Glenferrie 1882[12] Elevated Trams
Auburn Ground level Buses
Camberwell Lowered Trams Buses
East Camberwell 1900[12] Ground level
1 connection
Canterbury 1882[12] Elevated Buses
Chatham 1927[12] Ground level
Union Yes—step free access 2023[12] Lowered Buses
Box Hill 1882[12] Underground Trams Buses Coaches
Laburnum 1958[12] Elevated Buses
Blackburn 1882[12] Ground level
Nunawading 1888[12] Lowered Buses Coaches
Mitcham 1882[12] Buses
Heatherdale 1958[12]
Ringwood 1882[12] Ground level Buses Coaches
Heathmont 1926[12] Buses
Bayswater 1889[12] Lowered
Boronia 1920[12]
Ferntree Gully 1889[12] Ground level
Upper Ferntree Gully No—steep ramp
Upwey 1901[12]
Tecoma 1924[12]
Belgrave 1900[12]

Infrastructure

Rolling stock

The Belgrave line uses X'Trapolis 100 electric multiple unit (EMU) trains operating in a two three-car configuration, with three doors per side on each carriage and can accommodate of up to 432 seated passengers in each six car configuration.[13] The trains were originally built between 2002 and 2004 as well as between 2009 and 2020 with a total of 212 three-car sets constructed. The trains are shared with 7 other metropolitan train lines and have been in service since 2003.[13]

Alongside the passenger trains, Belgrave line tracks and equipment are maintained by a fleet of engineering trains. The four types of engineering trains are: the shunting train; designed for moving trains along non-electrified corridors and for transporting other maintenance locomotives, for track evaluation; designed for evaluating track and its condition, the overhead inspection train; designed for overhead wiring inspection, and the infrastructure evaluation carriage designed for general infrastructure evaluation.[14] Most of these trains are repurposed locomotives previously used by V/Line, Metro Trains, and the Southern Shorthaul Railroad.[14]

Accessibility

In compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act of 1992, all stations that are new-built or rebuilt are fully accessible and comply with these guidelines.[15] Half of stations on the corridor are fully accessible, however, there are some stations that haven't been upgraded to meet these guidelines.[16] These stations do feature ramps, however, they have a gradient greater than 1 in 14.[16] Stations that are fully accessible feature ramps that have a gradient less than 1 in 14, have at-grade paths, or feature lifts.[16] These stations typically also feature tactile boarding indicators, independent boarding ramps, wheelchair accessible myki barriers, hearing loops, and widened paths.[16][17]

Projects improving station accessibility have included the Level Crossing Removal Project, which involves station rebuilds and upgrades, and individual station upgrade projects.[18][19] These works have made significant strides in improving network accessibility, with more than 58% of Glen Waverley line stations classed as fully accessible. Future station upgrade projects will continue to increase the number of fully accessible stations overtime.

Signalling

References

  1. ^ Chronological List of events on the Puffing Billy Railway Archived 2 October 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Traffic". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. August 1981. p. 185.
  3. ^ "Bayswater Level Crossing Removal Project". Archived from the original on 15 January 2019. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  4. ^ "Traffic". Herald Sun. April 2016.
  5. ^ Victoria, Public Transport. "Belgrave Line". Public Transport Victoria. Archived from the original on 7 September 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  6. ^ Carey, Adam (4 June 2015). "Multimillion-dollar Richmond railway station revamp in limbo". The Age. Archived from the original on 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  7. ^ Wong, Marcus (10 May 2021). "Level crossing removals in 1920s Melbourne". Waking up in Geelong. Archived from the original on 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  8. ^ a b Wray, Tyson. "Melbourne's train lines definitively ranked from best to worst". Time Out Melbourne. Archived from the original on 12 December 2022. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  9. ^ Lee, Robert S. (2007). The railways of Victoria 1854–2004. Rosemary Annable, Donald S. Garden. Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Publishing. ISBN 978-0-522-85134-2. OCLC 224727085. Archived from the original on 8 May 2022. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
  10. ^ "Major Construction Begins On First Level Crossing Removal | Premier of Victoria". www.premier.vic.gov.au. Archived from the original on 6 January 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  11. ^ a b c d e "What year did your railway station open? | Public Transport Users Association (Victoria, Australia)". Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "What year did your railway station open? | Public Transport Users Association (Victoria, Australia)". Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  13. ^ a b "Wayback Machine" (PDF). web.archive.org. 1 March 2014. Archived from the original on 1 March 2014. Retrieved 17 February 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  14. ^ a b "NETWORK SERVICE PLAN | Addenda". 1 February 2011. Archived from the original on 7 March 2011.
  15. ^ "Accessibility – Public Transport Ombudsman Victoria". www.ptovic.com.au. Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  16. ^ a b c d "Station accessibility features". Metro Trains Melbourne. 2023. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  17. ^ "Accessing public transport". City of Melbourne. n.d. Archived from the original on 6 December 2022. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  18. ^ "Left behind: the fight for accessible public transport in Victoria". the Guardian. 12 June 2022. Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  19. ^ Victoria’s Big Build (17 October 2022). "Urban design framework". Victoria’s Big Build. Archived from the original on 3 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
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