Waking up in Geelong

When temporary platforms trump permanent stations

March 2nd, 2021 3 Comments

Back in 2015 work on removing the Main Road level crossing in St Albans was in full swing, and I noticed a curious situation – the ‘temporary’ St Albans platform 2 was better constructed than many railway stations in Melbourne!

The good

The platform was smooth and level, with plenty of room for passengers.

With a roof over the seat and a next train display.

And the bad

Albion station has a platform so decrepit it’s been fenced off.

The brick platform face at Caulfield is cracked.

At Mont Albert it’s the concrete that is crumbing.

Canterbury station is stupidly narrow.

Mont Albert is so narrow the yellow lines merge into one.

The concrete edge at Thornbury is cracking up.

East Camberwell is covered with lichen.

The timber edge at Strathmore has rotten away.

Weeds grow through deep cracks at Kensington.

South Kensington once had a yellow line.

With the other side of the platform falling down towards the fence.

So why did St Albans need a temporary platform anyway?

St Albans once had three platforms – one for the city, a second for trains towards Watergardens, and a third turnback platform on the western side.

To speed the removal of the Main Road level crossing, it was decided to use this extra space on the western side as the site of the new low level St Albans station, allowing trains to continue running through the old station.

The first stage of works saw platform 2 and 3 closed to passengers in October 2015.

The old platform was cleared over a weekend, with piling works able to proceed while trains were running.

Steel brackets were then installed along the tracks.

Allowing a cantilevered platform to be opened over the future station site in November 2015.

Excavators then moved in to dig out the new train trench.

By August 2016 the new low level platform was visible beneath the temporary one.

The final stage came in October 2016, when the Sunbury line was shut down, and the ground level tracks were removed.

With the new low level St Albans station opening to trains in November 2016.

And now at Glenroy

The level crossing at Glenroy Road is about to get the chop – and to make room for the construction work, a temporary platform and footbridge have been provided.

With grade separation works continuing for Glenroy Road, the Up platform was shifted and the subway closed. Now the station has a temporary footbridge for access to the Up Platform. pic.twitter.com/QzRweROiZ8

— Vicsig (@vicsig) January 25, 2021

A cheaper example

Back in 2007 the station building at Lara was extended.

Requiring part of the platform to be closed to passengers.

A temporary platform extension was provided to compensate for the closed section.

But it was a much cheaper affair than St Albans – scaffolding, plywood, and shade cloth.

And the ‘temporary’ solution that never went away

Back in 2009 temporary platforms extensions were provided by Queensland Rail at seven railway stations on the Sunshine Coast so that passengers could board six-car long trains.

Six years later the temporary structures were still in use at an annual cost of $288,000.

Photos from ten years ago: February 2011

February 23rd, 2021 2 Comments

Another instalment in my photos from ten years ago series – this time it is February 2011.

Rails out west

We start outside Footscray, where I captured a V/Line train sharing the suburban tracks on the way to the city.

In 2010 it was announced that Regional Rail Link would expand the cutting from four to six tracks, with V/Line trains from Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat moving onto their own tracks in stages between 2014 and 2015.

And a few kilometres away I found route 82 trams passing Highpoint Shopping Centre, where platform stops had recently been built.

A decade on the elderly Z3 class trams still ply the route, forcing intending passengers to climb a flight of stairs to board.

At Southern Cross Station I found The Southern Spirit – a luxury rail cruise train operated by Great Southern Rail around the east coast of Australia, using carriages normally seen on The Ghan.

The service ran in January 2010, January 2011 and February 2012 before being discontinued, however it was revived in 2019 as the Great Southern.

Late one night I found this pair of diesel locomotives making their way to Flemington Racecourse, Craigieburn and Williamstown – a driver training run to ensure that the train crew remained qualified on the routes.

Works trains continue to run over the Melbourne network, but now operated by Southern Shorthaul Railroad.

And at the Alstom Ballarat factory I found dozens of carriages wrapped in plastic – brand new X’Trapolis suburban trains waiting to be fitted out for use on the Melbourne network.

The final X’Trapolis train was delivered in 2020, leaving the Alstom Ballarat plant mothballed.

Building stuff

2011 saw work on the South Morang Rail Extension well underway, featuring the construction of 3.5km double track railway from Epping to South Morang, three new stations, and duplication of 5km of existing single track between Keon Park and Epping,

One night at Keon Park I captured a works train headed out to the works site.

Loaded with long lengths of freshly welded rail to form the new tracks.

Work on the project commenced in June 2010, with the extension to South Morang opening on April 2012.

On the road front, the $48.5 million Kororoit Creek Road duplication project was underway, including the removal of the level crossing at Altona North.

Work on the project was completed in December 2011.

And $200 million was being spent on the Anthony’s Cutting upgrade to the Western Freeway.

Requiring a massive cutting was excavated west of Bacchus Marsh.

The upgraded freeway opened to traffic in June 2011.

And screw ups

Down at Caroline Springs, work had started on the access road to the future railway station.

But that is as far as the project went for years – work on the station was paused until 2015, with the access road needing to be rebuilt to suit the updated plans.

One morning at Ascot Vale I was unable to reach the railway station – the pedestrian subway had flooded!

Thankfully newer stations in Melbourne don’t have the same problem – they keep the water off the tracks by pushing it back onto neighbouring streets.

Another day I was down at Yarraville station, where only a level crossing links the platforms. With trains running every 10 minutes the boom gates spend more time down than up, leaving passengers waiting and waiting, as the train they intend to catch prevents them from accessing the platform.

In the years since nothing has changed – there have been campaigns to reopen the pedestrian underpass, but the Level Crossing Removal Authority has no plans to touch the crossing.

And finally – the Siemens train braking saga. A spate of incidents in 2009 saw an investigation launched.

Since its introduction, the Siemens train has been involved in a relatively high number of reported overrun events when compared to other types of train operating on the network. The six platform overruns between 8 February and 3 March 2009 suggested that systemic issues remained unresolved and triggered this investigation.

The chosen fix – equipment to drop sand on the tracks.

The equipment was first trialled in March 2010, with installation across the fleet commencing in September 2010. By June 2011 the roll-out was complete, and speed restrictions removed.

A few buses

A decade ago bus routes still ran down Flinders Street in the Melbourne CBD.

Route 605 was one of them.

rerouted in 2017 to travel via Queen Street and Flagstaff station, as part of a package of changes made due to Metro Tunnel works at Domain Interchange.

And the other was route 238.

The route was discontinued in 2014, replaced by route 235, 237, 234 and 236 services between Fishermans Bend and the CBD.

And finally… ding ding!

In 2011 retired W class tram SW6.969 was converted into a bar and parked outside the Arts Centre.

It reappeared every summer as ‘Tram Bar’ until it was closed permanently in January 2015.

Footnote

Here you can find the rest of my ‘photos from ten years ago‘ series.

Level crossings replacing level crossings

February 16th, 2021 2 Comments

It might seem strange, but as the Level Crossing Removal Project separates road and rail across Melbourne’s railway network, a new kind of level crossing is appearing in their place for a specific purpose – road rail access pads for maintenance vehicles.

Road–rail vehicles

Many different kinds of road–rail vehicle exist, ready to assist with every kind of construction or maintenance task.

Trucks to transport materials to work sites.

Some able to drag a ‘train’ of wagons.

Excavators for digging.

Lifting.

Tamping ballast.

Unloading sleepers.

And laying them.

Big tip trucks to deliver ballast.

And small.

Piling rigs to bore foundations.

Cranes to put in the overhead stanchions.

Cherrypickers to reach the overhead wires.

Along with boom lifts.

4WDs refitted for weed spraying.

Testing level crossings.

Using ultrasonic sensors to look for rail flaws.

Trucks to chip trees.

And suck up gunk.

Even tunnels aren’t enough to keep them away.

So how do they get onto the tracks?

Traditionally road rail vehicles would just head to the nearest level crossing, turn 90 degrees to line up with the tracks, and lower their rail wheels.

But level crossing removals mean access points are few and far between.

Sometimes gravel will be dumped across the tracks to provide access to a worksite.

Allowing heavy equipment to access the rail corridor.

But the long term solution is “Road Rail Vehicle Access Pads” – level crossings to nowhere.

Essendon received one after the level crossing removal at Buckley Street.

As did the Sunbury line between Ginifer and St Albans station following the upgrades there.

And the brand new Mernda line extension doesn’t have any level crossings, so needed them too.

With the list of locations growing each time a level crossing is removed.

But there’s one problem

Ballast piled up between the rails can cause another problem – derailments.

Prohibition of Ballast Pad Hi-Rail Access Points

On the 9th January, 2019 an incident occurred where a tamper derailed as it passed through a ballast pad. Due to this incident and combined with the inability to inspect the Track Asset beneath the ballast (which is a requirement of the Track Technical Maintenance Plan), a number of measures require implementation.

Effective immediately:
– The construction of new ballast pads is prohibited across the MTM network;
– A plan for the removal of ALL existing ballast pads across the MTM network will be compiled by Infrastructure;
– All new hi-rail access points must have their construction type and methodology agreed by the Track & Structures Delivery Manager for all locations.

And asphalt between the rails makes inspecting the trackbed impossible.

Due to track conditions below the Curtin Street road-rail vehicle access pad at Ch.16.818km between Ginifer and St. Albans, a restriction on the speed of trains has been applied through the affected location.

In order to return train traffic to line speed, Infrastructure are required to remove the asphalt in situ at the RRV pad in order to perform rectification work.

In accordance with L1-CHE-INS-079, MTM Design Practice Note Road-Rail Vehicle Access Pads, section 6. vii. – Infrastructure will not return this RRV pad to an asphalt construction but instead utilise type-approved removable panels.

As the type-approved removable panels require procurement, there will be a period of time between when the geometry rectification works are completed and the access pad is returned to use for RRV access.

The geometry rectification works are planned for 25/08/2019 and the removable panels will be available for installation in late November.

So existing access pads have had to be upgraded.

Using the same rubber panels used at level crossings.

Network upgrades never end!

How long does it take to build a pedestrian crossing?

February 9th, 2021 14 Comments

One might think building a pedestrian crossing would be pretty easy, but for set of traffic lights in Sunshine, it was anything but.

The background

The story starts at Sunshine station, upgraded in 2014.

But for pedestrians crossing Hampshire Road they still needed to dodge four lanes of traffic at a roundabout.

Google Street View October 2018

So in 2015 Brimbank City Council proposed improvements to the area.

Sunshine Town Centre – Sunshine Station entry upgrades/integration

Improvements to Hampshire Road bridge and roundabouts to reflect new station entry arrangements at upgraded Station. Initiatives to prioritise safe pedestrian access to the station and safe cycle access over Hampshire Road. Design in first year with construction in following year.

A consultant was engaged to do a traffic study.

In 2016 SALT is conducting a study of proposed bicycle and pedestrian improvements in the Hampshire Road precinct in Sunshine, Victoria.

This involves preparing concept and functional designs for cycle paths over the Hampshire Road overpass and pedestrian crossings between Sunshine railway station and surrounding residential areas.

It was decided to add a set of pedestrian operated traffic signals , and remove one of the southbound lanes on Hampshire Road to make room for an on-road bicycle lane.

Brimbank City Council

With the design put to tender in late 2018.

Hampshire Road Overpass – Southern Pedestrian Crossing

Contract Number
19/2612

Released Date
1/12/2018

Closed Date
23/01/2019

Awarded to Harte Civil VIC Pty Ltd
$392,407.09 (ex. GST)

Construction time

Work started in July 2019.

With Hampshire Road dug up.

So that a raised hump could be created for the pedestrian crossing.

But traffic management left a lot to be designed – route 903 buses were detoured around the worksite, with zero information given by Public Transport Victoria.

By August 2019 things were starting to look real.

The traffic lights put into place at the pedestrian crossing.

Confusion reigns

Despite the traffic lights being switched off, the crossing was opened to pedestrians.

Signed as a zebra crossing, but no zebra stripes on the road.

There things stayed until January 2020, when fences appeared overnight at the crossing.

Blocking pedestrian access.

Featuring a ‘pedestrian crossing under maintenance’ sign from Brimbank City Council.

And a pedestrian detour to the next set of traffic lights – 150 metres away.

The next day the crossing had reopened.

But with traffic controllers stopping traffic every time a pedestrian wanted to cross.

And just as soon as they arrived, they were replaced by zebra stripes painted on the road surface.

Making it a ‘real’ zebra crossing.

And finally done

March 2020, and the traffic lights were finally switched on.

Allowing the zebra stripes to be painted out.

Only six months from ‘completion’ to actually functioning!

Footnote – zebra crossings

Road Safety Road Rules 2017 states:

(1) A driver approaching a pedestrian crossing must drive at a speed at which the driver can, if necessary, stop safely before the crossing.

(2) A driver must give way to any pedestrian on or entering a pedestrian crossing.

(3) A pedestrian crossing is an area of a road—

(a) at a place with white stripes on the road surface that—

(i) run lengthwise along the road; and
(ii) are of approximately the same length; and
(iii) are approximately parallel to each other; and
(iv) are in a row that extends completely, or partly, across the road; and

(b) with or without either or both of the following—

(i) a pedestrian crossing sign ;
(ii) alternating flashing twin yellow lights.

So technically a zebra crossing sign but no stripes on the road isn’t a pedestrian crossing, but a set of zebra stripes without a sign is.