Wattle Glen railway station

Wattle Glen railway station is a commuter railway station on the Hurstbridge line, which is part of the Melbourne railway network. It serves the north-eastern suburb of Wattle Glen, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Wattle Glen station is a ground level unstaffed station, featuring a single platform. It opened on 25 June 1912. ^[5]

Wattle Glen
PTV commuter rail station
Northbound view from station platform, August 2014
General information
Other names	Wattleglen
Location	Hurstbridge Road, Wattle Glen, Victoria 3096 Shire of Nillumbik Australia
Coordinates	37°39′50″S 145°10′54″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Hurstbridge
Distance	35.06 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	1
Tracks	1
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	60
Bicycle facilities	Yes (9 hoops)
Accessible	Yes—step free access
Other information
Status	Operational, unstaffed
Station code	WTT
Fare zone	Myki Zone 2
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	25 June 1912; 112 years ago (1912-06-25)
Electrified	August 1926 (1500 V DC overhead)
Previous names	Balee (1912–1922)
Passengers
2005–2006	45,037[1]
2006–2007	45,619[1]  1.29%
2007–2008	49,115[1]  7.66%
2008–2009	55,000[2]  11.98%
2009–2010	52,000[2]  5.45%
2010–2011	58,000[2]  11.54%
2011–2012	55,000[2]  5.17%
2012–2013	Not measured[2]
2013–2014	46,000[2]  16.36%
2014–2015	48,312[1]  5.02%
2015–2016	51,341[3]  6.26%
2016–2017	52,664[3]  2.57%
2017–2018	46,575[3]  11.56%
2018–2019	48,050[4]  3.17%
2019–2020	35,850[4]  25.4%
2020–2021	16,600[4]  53.7%
2021–2022	17,550[4]  5.72%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Diamond Creek towards Flinders Street Hurstbridge line Hurstbridge Terminus
Track layout Legend to Diamond Creek Occupation Crossing Occupation Crossing Occupation Crossing Watery Gully Creek 1 Wilson Road Occupation Crossing (Unprotected) Occupation Crossing (Unprotected) Bailey Gully Creek Occupation Crossing (Unprotected) to Hurstbridge

Initially opened as Balee, it was changed to Wattleglen (one word) on 14 August 1922.^[6] However, currently the station is signed and commonly known as Wattle Glen (two words).^[7][8][9]

History

Wattle Glen station opened on 25 June 1912, when the railway line from Eltham was extended to Hurstbridge.^{[5][better source needed]} Like the suburb itself, the station is named after the wattle trees that are in abundance throughout the area.^[10]

In 1968, flashing light signals were provided at the Wilson Road level crossing, located nearby in the down direction of the station.^{[5][better source needed]} In 1979, the former station building was destroyed by fire.^[11] In 1987, boom barriers were provided at the Wilson Road level crossing.^{[5][better source needed]}

In late 2007, an upgrade to the station and its car park took place, and included installing fencing and sealing the car park.^[12]

In 2018, it was announced that the Level Crossing Removal Project would undergo a second upgrade on the Hurstbridge line, which involved duplicating the track between Wattle Glen and Diamond Creek. However, no upgrades were proposed for the station itself or the nearby Wilson Road level crossing, with the duplication ending south of the level crossing.^[13] The duplication was completed in 2023.^{[citation needed]}

During the 2018/2019 financial year, Wattle Glen was the least-patronised station on Melbourne's metropolitan network, with approximately 48,000 passenger movements annually.^[14]

In 2020, it was announced that the station car park will be upgraded with 50 new spots, improved CCTV and lighting, as well as more bicycle parking facilities.^[15]

Although the railway station signage and the operator's public timetables render the name of the station as two words,^[16] some internal sources, such as VicNames, and the internal network map, renders the official spelling of the station as Wattleglen, one word.^[17][18] However, the operator's internal signalling diagram uses the two word form.^[19] It is unclear why the Post Office and suburb were made two words when the Post Office was renamed from Diamond Creek Upper on 1 November 1922, particularly after the station had been renamed (as one word) two and a half months earlier.

Platforms and services

Wattle Glen has one platform. It is served by Hurstbridge line trains.^[16]

Platform 1:

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

Transport links

Panorama Coaches operates one route via Wattle Glen station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  343 : Hurstbridge station – Greensborough station^[20]

References

1. Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Department of Transport
2. "Train Station Patronage FY2008-2014". Public Transport Victoria. 14 May 2015. Archived from the original (XLS) on 30 March 2016. Retrieved 1 November 2016. (access from Archived 3 November 2016 at the Wayback Machine)
3. Station patronage in Victoria for 2013-2018 Philip Mallis
4. Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
5. "Wattle Glen". vicsig.net. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
6. Victorian Railways Weekly Notice No. 32 of 1922
7. Willingham, Richard (1 August 2018). "More trains for Melbourne's north-east under Labor election pledge". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 30 April 2023.
8. Abbott, Lachlan (27 April 2023). "Lost in transliteration: Melbourne suburbs with two different spellings". The Age. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
9. Shanahan, Brittany (12 July 2017). "Should a new train station be built at Eltham North?". Herald Sun. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
10. "Wattle Glen". Victorian Places. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
11. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. August 1979. p. 174.
12. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. February 2008. p. 57.
13. "Hurstbridge Line Duplication | Level Crossing Removal Project". levelcrossings.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
14. Mallis, Philip (13 November 2019). "Station patronage data 2005 - 2019". Victorian Department of Transport. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
15. Theme, Base (22 September 2020). "Wattle Glen Station Car Park | Car Parks for Commuters". carparks.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
16. "Hurstbridge Line". Public Transport Victoria.
17. "VICNAMES - the Register of Geographic Names".
18. "L1-CHE-MAN-013 WTT NETWORK CONFIGURATION LINE DESCRIPTION" (PDF). Retrieved 30 April 2023.
19. Bastin, Wayne. "Diamond Creek to Hurstbridge Signalling Diagram" (PDF). Metro Trains Melbourne (MTM) External Document Portal. Metro Trains Melbourne. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
20. "343 Hurstbridge - Greensborough via Diamond Creek Station". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

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