Essendon railway station

Essendon railway station is a commuter and regional railway station on the suburban Craigieburn line and the regional Seymour line, part of the Melbourne and Victorian railway networks. It serves the northern suburb of Essendon in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Essendon station is a ground level premium station, featuring three platforms, an island platform with two faces and one side platform. It opened on 1 November 1860, with the current station provided in 1871. It initially closed on 1 July 1864, then reopened on 9 October 1871.^[5]

Essendon
PTV commuter and regional rail station
Southbound view from Platform 2, September 2018
General information
Location	Russell Street, Essendon, Victoria 3040 City of Moonee Valley Australia
Coordinates	37°45′22″S 144°54′58″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains V/Line
Line(s)	Craigieburn Seymour Shepparton (Tocumwal)
Distance	8.01 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	3 (1 side, 1 island)
Tracks	3
Connections	Bus Tram
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	499
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	No – steep ramp
Other information
Status	Operational, premium station
Station code	ESD
Fare zone	Myki Zone 1
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	1 November 1860; 164 years ago (1860-11-01)
Closed	1 July 1864
Rebuilt	9 October 1871
Electrified	May 1919 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2018 numbers 2005–2006 1,453,109[1] 2006–2007 1,494,586[1]  2.85% 2007–2008 1,673,602[1]  11.97% 2008–2009 1,680,211[2]  0.39% 2009–2010 1,736,588[2]  3.35% 2010–2011 1,702,189[2]  1.98% 2011–2012 1,670,551[2]  1.86% 2012–2013 Not measured[2] 2013–2014 1,599,832[2]  4.23% 2014–2015 1,570,121[1]  1.85% 2015–2016 1,597,247[2]  1.72% 2016–2017 1,750,538[2]  9.59% 2017–2018 1,688,377[2]  3.55%
2018–2019	1,480,050[2]  12.34%
2019–2020	1,298,700[2]  12.25%
2020–2021	579,150[2]  55.4%
2021–2022	723,050[3]  24.84%
2022–2023	1,160,200[4]  60.46%
2023–2024	1,312,800[4]  13.15%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Moonee Ponds towards Flinders Street Craigieburn line Glenbervie towards Craigieburn Preceding station V/Line Following station North Melbourne towards Southern Cross Seymour line Weekday peak only Broadmeadows towards Seymour
Track layout Legend to Moonee Ponds 1 2 3 to Glenbervie
Location

History

Essendon station opened on 1 November 1860 as the terminus of the private Melbourne and Essendon Railway Company line.^[5] The station closed with the line on 1 July 1864, but was reopened on 9 October 1871, under government ownership.^[6] The line to the north was opened in 1872, as part of the North East line to School House Lane.^[5] Like the suburb itself, the station was named after Essendon in Hertfordshire, England.^[7][8]

In 1878, a completely new station, with a single platform, was provided, on the site of the present island platform, with passenger subways and footbridges added in 1886, along with conversion of the island platform to the current layout. It was also at that time that a rail overpass was provided at Mount Alexander Road, in what was one of the first grade separation projects to be carried out in the state. In 1909, the present buildings were provided, along with a centre track between Platforms 1 and 2.^[6]

In 1919, electric train services between the city and Essendon were inaugurated, with electrification extended to Broadmeadows in 1921. However, Essendon remained the terminus of most suburban services, with a shuttle service operating beyond until 1925, and all-day through services to Broadmeadows not provided until 1941.^[9]

In 1965, the double line block signalling between Broadmeadows and Essendon was abolished, and was replaced with three position signalling.^[5] In 1969, the station took the layout it has today, with the abolition of the centre track, the closure of the stand-alone signal box, the provision of automatic signalling along the line, and the replacement of the interlocked gates with boom barriers at the former Buckley Street level crossing. A signal panel was provided within the station office in that same year.^[5]

On 7 March 1974, Harris motor 518M and Tait motor 368M were destroyed by fire whilst stabled at the station.^[10][11][12] Tait trailer 85G was also damaged in the fire.^[10][11][12]

On 8 June 1987, stabling of suburban trains at Essendon ceased, with the overhead wiring of all sidings removed just over a year later.^[13] On 1 September 1988, the former sidings near Rose Street were removed.^[13]

On 16 August 1996, Essendon was upgraded to a premium station.^[14] Also in that year, siding "B" was taken out of service.^[15] On 7 June 2014, the signal panel was abolished.^[16]

In 2018, the adjacent Buckley Street level crossing was grade separated, the street reopening on 28 September of that year after construction. Buckley Street now passes under the railway line in a trench.^[17]

As part of the Melbourne Metro Rail Tunnel, it was expected that the turnback facilities at the station would be upgraded, to allow services to start at Essendon when the tunnel opens in 2025,^[18] but this was ultimately cut from the project.^[19]

Platforms and services

Essendon has one island platform with two faces and one side platform. Platform 1 is only used by V/Line services to overtake Metro Trains' services, or when three-car trains are terminating, as it is unable to accommodate a six-car train.^[5]

The station is served by Craigieburn line trains^[20] and some V/Line Seymour line services.^[21]

Platform 1:

• Passing loop only for V/Line services and three-car passenger services during major disruptions.

Platform 2:

•  Craigieburn line  all stations services to Flinders Street
•  Seymour line  three weekday morning peak-hour V/Line services to Southern Cross (set down only)
•  Shepparton line  one weekday morning peak-hour V/Line service to Southern Cross (set down only)

Platform 3:

•  Craigieburn line  all stations services to Craigieburn
•  Seymour line  four weekday evening peak-hour V/Line services to Seymour (pick up only)
•  Shepparton line  one weekday evening peak-hour V/Line service to Shepparton (pick up only)

Transport links

Ten bus routes operate via Essendon station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  465 : to Keilor Park (operated by CDC Melbourne)^[22]
•  468 : to Highpoint Shopping Centre (operated by CDC Melbourne)^[23]
•  469 : Moonee Ponds Junction – Keilor East (operated by CDC Melbourne)^[24]
•  476 : Watergardens station – Moonee Ponds Junction (operated by CDC Melbourne)^[25]
•  477 : Moonee Ponds Junction – Broadmeadows station (operated by CDC Melbourne)^[26]
•  483 : Sunbury station – Moonee Ponds Junction (operated by Sunbury Bus Service)^[27]
•  503 : to Brunswick East (operated by Kinetic Melbourne)^[28]
•  510 : to Ivanhoe station (operated by Kinetic Melbourne)^[29]
• SmartBus  903 : Altona station – Mordialloc (operated by Kinetic Melbourne)^[30]
• Night Bus  959 : Queen Street City – Broadmeadows station (Saturday and Sunday mornings only) (operated by Ventura Bus Lines)^[31]

One tram route operates via Essendon station:

• : Airport West – Flinders Street station (via Elizabeth Street) (operated by Yarra Trams)^[32]

Gallery

• 
  H 220 leads the northbound Albury Express past the signal box at Essendon, c. 1949
• 
  Northbound view from Platform 1, April 2005