Merri railway station

Merri railway station is a commuter railway station on the Mernda line, which is part of the Melbourne railway network. It serves the north-eastern suburb of Northcote, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Merri station is a ground level unstaffed station, featuring two side platforms. It opened on 8 October 1889, with the current station provided in 1910.^[4]

Merri
PTV commuter rail station
Northbound view from Platform 2, July 2024
General information
Location	Railway Street, Northcote, Victoria 3070 City of Darebin Australia
Coordinates	37°46′40″S 144°59′35″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Mernda
Distance	8.04 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 side
Tracks	2
Connections	Bus Tram
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	6
Accessible	Yes—step free access
Other information
Status	Operational, unstaffed
Station code	MER
Fare zone	Myki Zone 1
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	8 October 1889; 135 years ago (1889-10-08)
Rebuilt	1910
Electrified	July 1921 (1500 V DC overhead)
Previous names	Northcote (1889-1906)
Passengers
2005–2006	192,755[1]
2006–2007	202,653[1]  5.13%
2007–2008	211,789[1]  4.5%
2008–2009	220,480[2]  4.1%
2009–2010	242,520[2]  10%
2010–2011	246,079[2]  1.46%
2011–2012	222,770[2]  9.47%
2012–2013	Not measured[2]
2013–2014	176,555[2]  20.75%
2014–2015	181,403[1]  2.74%
2015–2016	185,671[2]  2.35%
2016–2017	194,309[2]  4.65%
2017–2018	208,180[2]  7.14%
2018–2019	196,550[2]  5.59%
2019–2020	153,450[2]  21.93%
2020–2021	70,400[2]  54.1%
2021–2022	72,550[3]  3.05%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Rushall towards Flinders Street Mernda line Northcote towards Mernda
Track layout Legend to Rushall 1 2 Charles Street to Northcote
Location

Initially opened as Northcote, the station was given its current name of Merri on 10 December 1906.^[4]

History

Merri station opened on 8 October 1889, when the Inner Circle line was extended from North Fitzroy to Reservoir.^[4] The original conception of the station was to act as a major junction in a planned "North Suburban Railway System. The Argus reported in 1887 that; "The Station at Union-street, as shown on our plan, must necessarily be the most important in the Northern System, as lines branch from this point to Preston and Whittlesea on the north ; Heidelberg, Kew, &.c., on the east; Carlton, Royal-park, North Melbourne, and Spencer-street on the south-west; Fitzroy, East Melbourne, and Flinders-street on the south; and if the alternative route is adopted, Clifton-hill, Collingwood, Richmond, and Flinders street on the south east.",^[5] while land sale plans advertised the upcoming construction of the Grand Central Junction Station".^[6]

In 1910, the station building was rebuilt to accommodate an increased population in the area.^[7]

The nearby level crossing at Charles Street had hand-operated gates until 1924, when they were replaced with interlocked gates, operated from the nearby signal box, following several serious traffic accidents.^[8] In 1986, these gates were replaced with boom barriers.^[9][10] In 1987, the signal box was abolished.^[4]

In 1973, both platforms were extended at the down end of the station.^[4]

During October 1987, the double line block system between Merri – Northcote was abolished, and replaced with three position signalling,^[11] with all two position signals between Merri – Thornbury also abolished.^[11]

Announced as part of a $21.9 million package in the 2022/23 Victorian State Budget, Merri, alongside other stations, will receive accessibility upgrades, the installation of CCTV, and platform shelters.^[12] The development process will begin in late 2022 or early 2023, with a timeline for the upgrades to be released once construction has begun.

Platforms and services

Merri has two side platforms. It is served by Mernda line trains.^[13]

Platform 1:

•  Mernda line  all stations and limited express services to Flinders Street

Platform 2:

•  Mernda line  all stations services to Mernda

Transport links

Dysons operates one bus route via Merri station:

•  506 : Moonee Ponds Junction – Westgarth station^[14]

Yarra Trams operates two routes via Merri station:

• : West Preston – Victoria Harbour (Docklands)^[15]
• : Bundoora RMIT – Waterfront City (Docklands)^[16]

Gallery

• 
  Station building on Platform 1, May 2014
• 
  Northbound view from Platform 1,
  November 2022