The original single story brick station buildings, located on Platform 3, are listed on the Victorian Heritage Register and today function as the ticket and staff offices. The station was reopened in January 2016 as part of a multimillion dollar redevelopment of the Eastland Shopping Centre, Ringwood Town Square and Railway Place.[6][7]
History
Ringwood station opened on 1 December 1882, when the railway line from Camberwell was extended to Lilydale.[5] Like the suburb itself, the station was named after Ringwood in Hampshire, England.[8]
In 1926, a signal box was provided at the station, and was located on Platforms 1 and 2.[5] It has since been relocated to the bus interchange. Signals are now controlled from within the station building on Platform 3.
Stabling sidings are located at the down end of the station. The sidings closest to the Lilydale line were provided in 1973, and were extended in 1978,[5] whilst in 1979, the sidings closest to the Belgrave line and the former Bedford Road level crossing were provided.[9] In order to construct these sidings, the Belgrave line was temporarily slewed.[9]
In 1994, siding "A" was abolished.[5] On 31 July 1996, Ringwood was upgraded to a premium station.[10] In 1999, a major signalling project took place at the station.[11] The project included new sets of points to replace existing ones, upgrading of all signals and a new back platform constructed (Platform 1).[11][12] Prior to the project, the track on the Platform 1 side was used as a siding, which continued to the Wantirna Road bridge.
In 2015, Ringwood was upgraded as part of the Eastland Shopping Centre 2015–2016 expansion (Stage 5), with the $66 million project completed in January 2016. The work included a new concourse, the provision of lifts, a reconfigured bus interchange, CCTV and heritage work on the station buildings.[13][14] The station buildings themselves were not significantly altered, as they are heritage listed.[15]
Incidents and accidents
In February 1908, EE class steam locomotive 478 overran the buffer stops at the Wantirna Road siding, derailed and toppled down the embankment, ending up level with the road.[16]
On 29 January 1969, L Class electric loco L1157 ran away, crashing through the same buffer stops, and stopping with its front bogie dangling over Wantirna Road.[17]
On 16 October 1989, a Comeng and a Hitachi train set collided 500m east of the station, near the Bedford Road level crossing.[18][19][20] The collision occurred on a bend when the 07:11 train from Belgrave, led by Comeng 589M, collided with the rear of the 07:13 train from Upper Ferntree Gully, which was stationary at the time, derailing the Comeng train. 10 injuries were reported.[18][19][20]
On 7 December 1992, a Comeng set overshot the same siding as in the 1908 accident, with leading car 392M crashing into and stopping on top of the buffers, near the edge of the Wantirna Road bridge.[21]
On 12 May 2010, an X'Trapolis 100 set ran off the end of the tracks and into a fence in the Ringwood stabling yard.[22]
Facilities, platforms and services
Ringwood is served by Belgrave and Lilydale line trains.[23][24] It has one island platform (Platforms 1 and 2) and one side platform (Platform 3). Platform 3 and the concourse feature customer service windows, with Platforms 1 and 2 having a semi-enclosed waiting area. Platform 3 and the concourse also have toilets, with a kiosk located on Platforms 1 and 2. All platforms are accessible via ramps, stairs and lifts. The bus interchange is located outside Platform 3.
