Caroline Springs railway station

Caroline Springs
PTV regional rail station
Southbound view of the station forecourt, concourse, entrance and platform, October 2017
General information
LocationChristies Road,
Ravenhall, Victoria 3023
City of Melton
Australia
Coordinates37°46′4″S 144°44′18″E / 37.76778°S 144.73833°E / -37.76778; 144.73833
Owned byVicTrack
Operated byV/Line
Line(s)Ballarat Ararat Maryborough
(Ararat)
Distance21.20 kilometres from
Southern Cross
Platforms2 (1 island)
Tracks2
ConnectionsList of bus routes in Melbourne Bus
Construction
Structure typeGround
Parking350
Bicycle facilitiesYes
AccessibleYes
Other information
StatusOperational, staffed part-time
Station codeCPS
Fare zoneMyki Zone 2
WebsitePublic Transport Victoria
History
Opened28 January 2017; 7 years ago (2017-01-28)
Previous namesRavenhall (provisionally)
Passengers
2016–201760,248[1]
2017–2018Not measured[1]
2018–2019165,500[1] Increase 174.7%
2019–2020126,700[1] Decrease 23.44%
2020–202164,400[1] Decrease 49.17%
Services
Preceding station Railways in Victoria V/Line Following station
Deer Park
towards Southern Cross
 Ballarat line Rockbank
towards Wendouree
Ballarat line
(Melton line)
 Rockbank
towards Melton or Bacchus Marsh
Ararat line Rockbank
towards Ararat
Maryborough line
One daily service
 Rockbank
One-way operation

Caroline Springs railway station is a regional railway station on the Ararat line, part of the Victorian railway network. It serves the western suburb of Ravenhall, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Caroline Springs station is a ground level premium station, featuring an island platform. It opened on 28 January 2017.[2]

The station was provisionally named as Ravenhall. However, during construction, it was given the name "Caroline Springs".

History

The Victorian Transport Plan, released in 2008, proposed the progressive upgrade of the Melton line, to support future urban development in the corridor.[3][4] Construction of the station was to have commenced in 2010, and be completed in 2012.[5]

After the 2010 state election, the Baillieu Government put further construction on hold,[6] with an access road to the site having been partially constructed.[7][8] Construction of a bridge over the railway line had to be completed, to serve the nearby Boral quarry, which otherwise would have been isolated by the new Regional Rail Link line that runs north-south across it.

In May 2014, in the run-up to the 2014 state election, the Napthine Government announced that construction would commence in 2014, with a scheduled 2016 completion date.[9] Construction commenced in August 2015.[10]

However, in May 2016, the Andrews Government made the decision to "future-proof" the station for the duplication of the Ballarat line, by redesigning the station with a second platform. As a result, the opening of the station was delayed until early 2017.[11]

On 28 January 2017, the station was officially opened by the Member for Kororoit, Marlene Kairouz, during a community day, with the first services calling at the station the following day.[2][12][13][14][15]

First announced by the Andrews State Government in 2018, the station is set to be integrated into the metropolitan railway network, as part of the Western Rail Plan.[16]

As part of the Regional Rail Revival project, 18 km of track was duplicated between Deer Park West and Melton. It was provided in late 2019, coinciding with the opening of Cobblebank.[2][17][18]

Platforms and services

Caroline Springs station has one island platform with two faces. It is served by V/Line Ballarat and Ararat line trains.[19]

Platform 1:

Platform 2:

Kastoria Bus Lines operates two routes via Caroline Springs station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

  •  460 : to Watergardens station[20]
  •  462 : to Watergardens station[21]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Archived 17 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Philip Mallis
  2. ^ a b c "Caroline Springs". vicsig.net. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
  3. ^ "General News". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. February 2009. p. 38.
  4. ^ Archived version of the Victorian Transport Plan
  5. ^ Andrew Jefferson (7 November 2010). "Work starts on Caroline Springs train station, just a bit south". Melton Leader. Archived from the original on 10 November 2010. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  6. ^ "Transport Projects - New station for Caroline Springs". transport.vic.gov.au. 2011. Archived from the original on 23 April 2011. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  7. ^ Jason Dowling and David Rood (25 March 2011). "State of limbo: Baillieu's project logjam". The Age. Archived from the original on 24 November 2015. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
  8. ^ Jason Dowling (1 February 2012). "Caroline Springs station in limbo". The Age. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2012.
  9. ^ Construction set to begin on a new station for Caroline Springs Archived 2 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine Premier of Victoria 2 May 2014
  10. ^ Public Transport Victoria: Caroline Springs Station Archived 25 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  11. ^ Lauaki, Esther (24 May 2016). "Redesign for unopened Caroline Springs station". Star Weekly. Archived from the original on 25 May 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  12. ^ "There's more in store for regional Victoria". 21 November 2016. Archived from the original on 9 January 2017. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
  13. ^ Caroline Springs Train Station community day Archived 2 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine City of Melton
  14. ^ Melbourne's Newest Station Ready for Passengers Archived 2 February 2017 at the Wayback Machine Minister for Public Transport 28 January 2017
  15. ^ "General News". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. February 2017. p. 68.
  16. ^ "A Real Plan For Fast Regional Rail And Metro Rail For The West". Archived from the original on 9 April 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2020.
  17. ^ "Cobblebank Station opening community event". Victoria's Big Build. 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  18. ^ "Celebrating Cobblebank Station opening". Victoria's Big Build. 24 June 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  19. ^ Ballarat - Melbourne timetable Public Transport Victoria
  20. ^ "460 Watergardens Station - Caroline Springs Station via Caroline Spring Town Centre". Public Transport Victoria.
  21. ^ "462 Watergardens Station - Caroline Springs (south) via Caroline Springs Square SC". Public Transport Victoria.