Political meddling in the provision of additional entrances to Melbourne railway stations is a topic I’ve covered before, and here is yet another example – the reopening the second entrance at Lilydale station.
Some history
Once upon a time Lilydale station had two entrances – the main one at the city end towards the main street, and a secondary one towards the railway car park.
Both entrances cross the tracks leading to platform 1, with pedestrian boom barriers protecting the main entrance since 1985.
But the other end was an unprotected ‘crib’ crossing, which lacked Metcard ticketing equipment.
By the time Myki was rolled out, the entrance received ticketing equipment.
But a safety review saw the unprotected crossing deemed unsafe, so it was closed to public access in 2013.
The fight begins
Politicians to the rescue – Labor Member for the Eastern Metropolitan Region, Shaun Leane, tabled a petition with 281 signatures to the house on 12 June 2014.
To the Legislative Council of Victoria:
The petition of certain citizens of the state of Victoria draws to the attention of the Legislative Council the closure of the second pedestrian access to the Lilydale railway station platforms.
The petitioners therefore request that the Napthine government take immediate action to make safe and reopen the closed pedestrian access onto the Lilydale railway station platforms.
And in the leadup to the 2014 State Election, Labor promised to reopen the entrance.
A second, safer entrance for Lilydale station under Labor
October 9, 2014An Andrews Labor Government will re-open the second entrance at Lilydale Station to make it safer and more convenient for locals.
Shadow Minister for Public Transport, Jill Hennessy, joined Labor Candidate for Evelyn, Peter Harris, and Labor Member for the Eastern Metropolitan Region, Shaun Leane, to announce the good news to commuters.
Currently, without the alternate entry and exit point, commuters have to walk unreasonable distances in the dark just to get to their cars. Labor will also install additional ticketing machines at the new second entrance.
Quotes attributable to Ms Hennessy:
“After an hour-long trip on a packed train, Lilydale locals deserve a bit more safety and convenience at the station, especially after hours.”
“Labor’s plan to transform our public transport system also focuses on the smaller things, like upgrading station car parks and making the daily commute more convenient.”
“I’m proud that Peter Harris has gone out in his community and listened to stakeholders and local residents, and I’m proud that Labor will get this done.”
Quotes attributable to Peter Harris, Labor Candidate for Evelyn:
“Local residents shouldn’t have to walk down the middle of the road in the dark to get to their cars.”
“This, together with the removal of the Maroondah Highway level crossing, has been the number one issue that commuters have talked to us in Lilydale and Labor have listened.”
“We ran a petition to reopen this entrance and we had overwhelming support from the community. Labor has listened.”
Labor won the election, despite transport related propaganda and pork barrelling from the incumbent state government.
But progress on reopening the entrance at Lilydale station was slow – so local Liberal MP Christine Fyffe, Member for Evelyn, took up the case in parliament on 16 April 2015.
My request for action is to the Minister for Public Transport. The action I require is for the minister to say when the reopening of the second entrance at Lilydale station will be carried out, fulfilling an election commitment.
Prior to the last election, the government committed to fixing what it called a big problem for local commuters. The commitment was to reopen Lilydale station’s second entrance. The Labor candidate for Evelyn made a great deal about the severity of the problem and its impact on residents, saying:
People shouldn’t have to walk down the middle of the road in the dark to get to their cars.
That’s why Labor will work to make the second entrance at Lilydale station safe and reopen it in a timely manner.
The crossing was initially closed by Labor’s mates in WorkCover, who deemed the crossing to be unsafe. That is despite no known accidents having occurred at that crossing. One thing I do agree with the Labor candidate about is that it was wrong that people had to walk down the middle of a long, unmade car park, passing potholes and with cars pulling in and out, possibly in the dark. The crossing should never have been closed.
I have been informed that to install a crossing to today’s standards would cost around $870,000, which would ensure the proper interlinking of all necessary signal panels. I have also been told that the myki equipment that was at the now-closed second crossing has been removed and installed at Seymour station. If this is true, it will add to the costs of reopening.
With Minister for Public Transport, Jacinta Allan responding.
The member for Evelyn raised a matter for me regarding the Lilydale station. Is it not fantastic to see the member for Evelyn embracing the Labor Party’s election commitments and wanting to make sure that it delivers on them? I can assure the member for Evelyn that we have absolutely every intention of delivering on our election commitments, including those that those opposite did not support but rather opposed. We will be getting on with doing that.
I am pleased to advise the member for Evelyn that Public Transport Victoria is currently working through the implementation of this commitment. The reopening of the entrance requires the government and Public Transport Victoria to address the very safety concerns that initially caused its closure.
A year later nothing had changed, so the local member put more pressure on the government.
Government called into line over Lilydale train station exit issues
Lilydale & Yarra Valley Leader
Sam Bidey
June 8, 2016A Mt Evelyn commuter is calling the Government out on their pre-election commitment to reopen the second entrance at Lilydale train station.
Fed up after missing her train countless times, Rhiannon Skahill has asked why commuters still have to trudge hundreds of metres to get to their cars, when a second entrance would simplify the situation.
On October 9, 2014, then Opposition spokeswoman on public transport Jill Hennessy, and Evelyn Labor candidate Peter Harris, said if a Labor government was elected it would establish a second, safer entrance at Lilydale station.
Two years on and with no entrance in sight, Ms Skahill, a mother and disability support worker, wrote to Evelyn state Liberal MP Christine Fyffe to drum up some action.
“Unfortunately for me, Lilydale is one of the few train stations in the Melbourne metropolitan area to have only one entry and exit,” Ms Skahill said.
“Once you park your car, you then have to walk all the way back to the entrance over a kilometre away. It makes me angry.”
Ms Skahill said having only one entrance was not only inconvenient but also dangerous as during peak hour many commuters converged on the one narrow entry/exit point.
Mrs Fyffe said she questioned the Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allen about the crossing project in December 2014 and received a response that stated that “PTV is currently examining a number of options regarding this crossing, with an expectation that it will be reopened for public use in 2015”.
“As of May 2016, the second crossing remains closed,” Mrs Fyffe said.
“Labor has failed to deliver according to their own stated timeline.”
Ms Allen said the second entrance was closed under the former Liberal government and it would be reopened in coming months by Labor.
“Planning and design for the upgrade at the northern end of the platform is already under way. Construction will begin in the coming months and be finished next year,” she said.
“The entrance will be fully accessible and include automatic gates to protect the safety of people crossing the rail line.”
Work finally begins
Contracts for the work were signed in August 2016.
Station opens up
Mount Evelyn Star Mail
8 August 2016The Victorian Government has announced Active Railway Signalling is to construct the second entrance at Lilydale Station which aims to make it safer and more convenient for locals and commuters.
Eastern Metropolitan Region MP Shaune Leane said work will now begin in the coming months and open by the end of this year.
Construction will include a new pedestrian crossing with automatic gates and bells to warn pedestrians of an approaching train.
Construction starting later soon after.
Delivering safer station promise
Upper Yarra Mail
1 November 2016Works have started on a second entrance at Lilydale tram station, which aims to make it safer and more convenient for locals to catch the train.
The new station entrance at the northern end of the platform will include an accessible ramp, as well as a a pedestrian crossing, featuring automatic gates and audible alarms.
The existing second entrance was closed in 2013 due to safety concerns, forcing passengers to walk hundreds of metres through the station car park to access the main entrance.
The new entrance will be fully accessible and new myki readers will make the transition between the car park and platform as seamless possible.
Member for Eastern Metropolitan Region Shaun Leane visited Lilydale train station on Monday, 24 October to announce the new entrance will be completed by the end of this year.
He said the Victorian Government was delivering on an important election commitment.
“We promised it, and now we’re getting it done – the second entrance at Lilydale station will be reopened by the end of the year.”‘ he said.
“People will no longer have to walk hundreds of metres through the car park to catch the train. This new entrance will be safer and more accessible for all passengers.”
Train services will continue to operate as normal during construction. with a temporary reduction in car spaces to get on with building the new entrance.
Shiny new asphalt laid between platform and car park.
Google Maps 2020
New signals installed.
Protecting trains in the stabling sidings.
In conjunction with a set of automatic pedestrian gates.
Allowing the crossing to finally be reopened.
With a local resident writing in to The Age to celebrate their early Christmas gift.
Hallelujah. Common sense has prevailed in that there is a second entrance to Lilydale railway station at the far end of the platform. No more long walks to board the train. I do hope that other stations will be given entrances at both ends of platforms. If only common sense could prevail on climate action, too. That would be a grand Christmas gift to all of us.
Elaine O’Shannessy, Wandin North
And the future?
With Maroondah Highway included in the list of 50 level crossings to be removed by the Victorian Government, what does the future hold for Lilydale station?
Luckily for rail passengers, the lessons of the past have been learnt – two entrances will be provided to the new elevated station, one either side of the Maroondah Highway.
But the second entrance that took years to reopen? It’s headed for the scrap heap – the heritage station building is being retained, but the tracks either side will be removed.
Footnote: gory technical details
Weekly Operational Notice No. 47/2016 includes the commissioning of the second entrance to Lilydale station.
Lilydale
Provision of pedestrian gates down end of platform no. 1Between 21:00 hours on Monday 28th November 2016 and 04:00 hours on Tuesday 29th November 2016, automatic pedestrian gates and electromagnetic latched emergency exit gates located at the down end of platform no. 1 will be commissioned into service.
The following will be affected during these works:
Signal: LIL304 & LIL309
Track Circuits: 309T, 209T & 209ATThese works will be carried out in conjunction with an Absolute Occupation.
Further reading
In 2014 Melbourne-based economist Jason Murphy pondered the question of adding additional station entrances in his post ‘Faster train journeys – some low-hanging fruit‘.
Professor David Levinson also asked the same question in his 2017 post ‘Sydney train stations need two exits‘, the 2019 article ‘How to increase train use by up to 35% with one simple trick‘, and associated journal article with Bahman Lahoorpoor – ‘Catchment if you can: The effect of station entrance and exit locations on accessibility‘.
