Merinda Park railway station

Merinda Park railway station is a commuter railway station on the Cranbourne line, which is part of the Melbourne railway network. It serves the eastern suburb of Cranbourne North, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Merinda Park station is a ground level premium station, featuring two side platforms. It opened on 24 March 1995, with the current station provided in 2022.^[4]

Merinda Park
PTV commuter rail station
Station building and entrance to Platform 1, February 2022
General information
Location	Endeavour Drive, Cranbourne North, Victoria 3977 City of Casey Australia
Coordinates	38°04′48″S 145°15′51″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Cranbourne
Distance	42.35 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 side
Tracks	2
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Parking	204
Accessible	Yes — step-free access
Other information
Status	Operational, unstaffed
Station code	MPK
Fare zone	Myki Zone 2
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	24 March 1995; 29 years ago (1995-03-24)
Rebuilt	13 February 2022 (LXRP)
Electrified	March 1995 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2006	146,634[1]
2006–2007	188,659[1]  28.66%
2007–2008	271,361[1]  43.83%
2008–2009	299,296[2]  10.29%
2009–2010	329,995[2]  10.25%
2010–2011	354,491[2]  7.42%
2011–2012	311,688[2]  12.07%
2012–2013	Not measured[2]
2013–2014	312,227[2]  0.17%
2014–2015	343,791[1]  10.1%
2015–2016	388,318[2]  12.95%
2016–2017	390,063[2]  0.44%
2017–2018	312,186[2]  19.96%
2018–2019	306,964[2]  1.67%
2019–2020	301,600[2]  1.74%
2020–2021	126,750[2]  57.97%
2021–2022	183,900[3]  45.08%
2022–2023	397,700[3]  116.25%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Lynbrook towards Flinders Street or Dandenong Cranbourne line Cranbourne Terminus
Track layout Legend to Lynbrook 1 2 to Cranbourne

History

Merinda Park station opened as part of the electrification of the line to Cranbourne.^[5] The station is named after an adjacent housing estate, opened up in the 1980s.^[6]

In 1977, flashing light signals were provided at the former Thompsons Road level crossing, which was located nearby, in the down direction from the station.^[7] In 1995, boom barriers were provided at the crossing in conjunction with the electrification project. On 25 June 2018, the level crossing was eliminated as part of the Level Crossing Removal Project.^[8][9]

In December 2019, the Level Crossing Removal Project announced that the station would be completely rebuilt as part of the Cranbourne line duplication.^[10] A second platform was added, and the main entrance moved to a more central location. On 18 March 2021, part of the new station opened,^[11] with the remainder completed by 13 February 2022.^[12] The duplication allowed an improved timetable for the Cranbourne line, with services operating roughly every 10 minutes during the morning peak.^[12]

Platforms and services

Merinda Park has two side platforms. It is served by Cranbourne line trains.^[13]

Platform 1:

•  Cranbourne line  all stations and limited express services to Flinders Street; all stations shuttle services to Dandenong

Platform 2:

•  Cranbourne line  all stations services to Cranbourne

By June 2025, it is planned that trains on the Cranbourne line will be through-routed to Sunbury, via the new Metro Tunnel.

Transport links

Cranbourne Transit operates two bus routes to and from Merinda Park station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  799 : to The Avenue Village Shopping Centre (Cranbourne North)^[14]
•  881 : to Clyde North^[15]

Ventura Bus Lines operates one route via Merinda Park station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  863 : Endeavour Hills Shopping Centre – Cranbourne West^[16]

References

1. Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Archived 17 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine Department of Transport
2. Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Archived 17 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Philip Mallis
3. Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Archived 6 March 2023 at the Wayback Machine Data Vic
4. "Merinda Park". vicsig.net. Archived from the original on 24 December 2022. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
5. Fiddian, Marc (1997). Trains, Tracks, Travellers: A history of the Victorian Railways. South Eastern Independent Newspapers. p. 154. ISBN 1-875475-12-5.
6. Dixon, Brian (8 October 1980). "A Radical Departure". The Age. p. 30.
7. "Works". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. August 1977. p. 183.
8. "Hello new Thompsons Road bridge, goodbye level crossing | Level Crossing Removal Authority". levelcrossings.vic.gov.au. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
9. Authority, Major Road Projects (1 January 2003). "Thompsons Road Upgrade". roadprojects.vic.gov.au. Archived from the original on 6 July 2018. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
10. "Merinda Park Station". Victoria's Big Build. Archived from the original on 16 May 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
11. "First step for second track as Cranbourne works gather pace". Victoria's Big Build. Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
12. "Cranbourne Line duplicated, Greens Road crossing removed and new station open". Level Crossing Removal Project. Archived from the original on 27 February 2022. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
13. "Cranbourne Line". Public Transport Victoria.
14. "799 Merinda Park Station - The Avenue Village SC". Public Transport Victoria. Archived from the original on 3 May 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
15. "881 Merinda Park Station - Clyde North". Public Transport Victoria. Archived from the original on 3 May 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
16. "863 Endeavour Hills SC - Cranbourne West via Hallam Rd". Public Transport Victoria. Retrieved 7 June 2024.

External links

• Media related to Merinda Park railway station, Melbourne at Wikimedia Commons
• Melway map at street-directory.com.au