Laverton railway station, Melbourne

Laverton railway station is a commuter railway station on the Werribee line, which is part of the Melbourne railway network. It serves the western suburb of Laverton in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Laverton station is a ground level premium station, featuring three platforms, an island platform with two faces and one side platform. It opened on 1 July 1886, with the current station provided in 2010.^[4][5]

Laverton
PTV commuter rail station
South-west bound view from Platform 1, showing station building and footbridge, January 2023
General information
Location	Railway Avenue, Laverton, Victoria 3027 City of Hobsons Bay Australia
Coordinates	37°51′50″S 144°46′20″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Werribee
Distance	21.01 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	3 (1 island, 1 side)
Tracks	4
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	947
Bicycle facilities	Yes—19 spaces
Accessible	Yes—step free access
Other information
Status	Operational, premium station
Station code	LAV
Fare zone	Myki Zone 1/2 overlap
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	1 July 1886; 138 years ago (1886-07-01)
Rebuilt	2009-2010
Electrified	November 1983 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2006	736,023[1]
2006–2007	842,093[1]  14.41%
2007–2008	1,091,564[1]  29.62%
2008–2009	1,442,894[2]  32.18%
2009–2010	1,527,169[2]  5.84%
2010–2011	1,666,838[2]  9.14%
2011–2012	1,715,939[2]  2.94%
2012–2013	Not measured[2]
2013–2014	1,501,737[2]  12.48%
2014–2015	1,269,140[1]  15.48%
2015–2016	1,127,856[2]  11.13%
2016–2017	1,140,726[2]  1.14%
2017–2018	1,152,390[2]  1.02%
2018–2019	1,196,550[2]  3.83%
2019–2020	944,750[2]  21.04%
2020–2021	596,350[2]  36.87%
2021–2022	552,750[3]  7.31%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Aircraft towards Werribee Werribee line Westona towards Frankston via Flinders Street Newport Express tracks towards Frankston via Flinders Street Werribee Limited express services Terminus
Track layout Legend to Newport Cherry Creek Maidstone Street (Removing by 2030) Kayes Drain to SCL Terminal to Westona Princes Freeway 1 2 3 to Aircraft Broad gauge, electrified Standard gauge, non-electrified This diagram: view talk edit

At the up end of the station, the tracks diverge. Werribee-bound services take the direct double track route to Newport, while all-stations Altona services operate on the single track Altona loop line to Newport. The loop line reconnects with the direct route just after the demolished station Mobiltown.

The Western standard gauge line passes to the north of Platform 1.

History

Laverton station opened on 1 July 1886, like the suburb itself, was named after the pastoral run Laverton, which was settled by Alfred Langhorne in 1836.^[6]

In 1968, the former side platform was converted to an island platform, as part of the duplication of the line to Werribee.^[5] In 1969, the station building on the island platform (Platforms 2 and 3) was provided.^[4]

At about 7:55pm on 12 July 1976, a derailment occurred at the up end of the station, involving a Port Fairy – Melbourne passenger service.^{[7][8][9][10]} After crossing from the east line to the west line, the train derailed and sideswiped the Princes Highway overpass, destroying a number of wood-bodied carriages.^{[7][8][9][10]} There was one fatality in the derailment, and a number of other passengers were injured. It was later revealed that the train diverged through a crossover at excessive speed.^{[7][8][9][10]}

In 1986, the control of all signals and points was transferred to the Newport signal box,^[11] although the signal control panel remained within the station building until 2009.^[4]

On 1 October 1987, two Hitachi suburban trains collided at the up end of the station, near Laverton Junction, after an up train over ran the Altona loop line and collided with a down train.^[12][13]

In 1998, Laverton was upgraded to a premium station.^[14]

The refreshed station platforms taken from footbridge, February 2010

In May 2008, the Victorian State Government announced, as part of the 2008/2009 State Budget, that Laverton would receive a $92.6 million upgrade, which would include the building of a third platform. The work included the tripling of one kilometre of existing double track, between the Altona loop line and the station.^[15] In October 2009, the first section of the footbridge was installed and,^[16] on 9 February 2010, the completed bridge was opened to the public.^[17] The remainder of these works were completed in mid-2010.^[4]

The station footbridge, built as part of the 2009-2010 station upgrade, February 2010

Until June 2015, Geelong and Warrnambool line services passed through the station, but those services now use the Regional Rail Link route via Sunshine, Tarneit and Wyndham Vale.

As part of stage 1 of the Western Rail Plan Geelong Fast Rail project, Laverton is scheduled to be upgraded.^[18][19]

On the express route between Laverton and Newport stations, former station Galvin has been closed and demolished, and former station Paisley has been closed, and has had its platform access and station building removed.

Platforms and services

Laverton has one island platform with two faces and one side platform. It is served by Werribee line trains.^[20]

Platform 1:

•  Werribee line  all stations and limited express services to Flinders Street and Frankston

Platform 2:

•  Werribee line  all stations and limited express services to Werribee (weekdays only)

Platform 3:

•  Werribee line  all stations services to Flinders Street via Altona (weekdays only); all stations services to Werribee (early mornings, evenings and weekends only)

Transport links

CDC Melbourne operates eight routes to and from Laverton station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  400 : to Sunshine station (shared with Transit Systems Victoria)^[21]
•  411 : to Footscray^[22]
•  412 : to Footscray^[23]
•  414 : to Footscray station^[24]
•  415 : to Williamstown^[25]
•  417 : to Laverton station (loop service via Laverton North)^[26]
•  496 : to Sanctuary Lakes (Point Cook)^[27]
•  498 : to Hoppers Crossing station^[28]

Transit Systems Victoria operates one route to and from Laverton station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  400 : to Sunshine station (shared with CDC Melbourne)^[21]

References

1. Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Department of Transport
2. Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Philip Mallis
3. Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
4. "Laverton". vicsig.net. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
5. "Laverton Station". Rail Geelong. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
6. "Laverton". Victorian Places. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
7. Allin, John; Arkley, Lindsey (12 July 1976). "Train wreck – the morning after". The Age. p. 1.
8. Allin, John; Arkley, Lindsey (12 July 1976). "Woman's train trip to death". The Age. p. 3.
9. "Laverton derailment". Rail Geelong. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
10. "Laverton". victorianrailways.net. Retrieved 9 November 2021.
11. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. March 1987. p. 89.
12. "Operations". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. January 1988. p. 22.
13. "Rollingstock". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. March 1988. p. 87.
14. "Upgrading Eltham to a Premium Station". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1997. pp. 303–315.
15. Laverton Rail Upgrade – Department of Transport, Victorian Government
16. "Rail Geelong – Gallery – Dropping it down into place". railgeelong.com. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
17. "New Footbridge Unveiled at Laverton Station". Media release: Minister for Public Transport. premier.vic.gov.au. 9 February 2010. Retrieved 23 February 2010.
18. "Faster Services For Geelong On The Way". Premier of Victoria. 21 November 2020. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
19. "Geelong Fast Rail - About the project - Stage 1: Werribee to Newport". Victoria's Big Build - Rail Projects Victoria. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
20. "Werribee Line". Public Transport Victoria.
21. "400 Sunshine Station - Laverton Station via Robinsons Road". Public Transport Victoria.
22. "411 Laverton Station - Footscray via Altona Meadows & Altona & Millers Rd". Public Transport Victoria.
23. "412 Laverton Station - Footscray via Altona Meadows & Altona & Mills St". Public Transport Victoria.
24. "414 Laverton Station - Footscray via Geelong Rd". Public Transport Victoria.
25. "415 Laverton Station - Williamstown via Altona". Public Transport Victoria.
26. "417 Laverton Station - Laverton Station via Laverton North". Public Transport Victoria.
27. "496 Laverton Station - Sanctuary Lakes via Sanctuary Lakes SC". Public Transport Victoria.
28. "498 Laverton Station - Hoppers Crossing Station via Dunnings Rd". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

• Media related to Laverton railway station at Wikimedia Commons
• Melway map at street-directory.com.au