Werribee railway station

Werribee railway station is the terminus of the electrified suburban Werribee line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the western Melbourne suburb of Werribee, and it opened on 25 June 1857.^[4]

Werribee
PTV commuter rail station
South-west bound view from Platform 2 in September 2005
General information
Location	Comben Drive, Werribee, Victoria 3030 City of Wyndham Australia
Coordinates	37°53′58″S 144°39′40″E / 37.8994°S 144.6611°E / -37.8994; 144.6611
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro Trains
Line(s)	Werribee
Distance	31.70 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	3 (1 island, 1 side)
Tracks	3
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Parking	582
Bicycle facilities	Yes
Accessible	No—steep ramp
Other information
Status	Operational, premium station
Station code	WER
Fare zone	Myki Zone 2
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	25 June 1857; 166 years ago (1857-06-25)
Rebuilt	30 April 1983
Electrified	November 1983 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–2006	709,932^[1]
2006–2007	783,089^[1]  10.3%
2007–2008	893,854^[1]  14.14%
2008–2009	907,355^[2]  1.51%
2009–2010	963,761^[2]  6.21%
2010–2011	1,039,778^[2]  7.88%
2011–2012	1,067,810^[2]  2.69%
2012–2013	Not measured^[2]
2013–2014	1,364,480^[2]  27.78%
2014–2015	1,380,879^[1]  1.2%
2015–2016	1,109,420^[2]  19.65%
2016–2017	1,103,799^[2]  0.5%
2017–2018	1,128,344^[2]  2.22%
2018–2019	1,211,200^[2]  7.34%
2019–2020	1,061,600^[2]  12.35%
2020–2021	351,350^[2]  66.9%
2021–2022	532,750^[3]  51.62%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station Terminus Werribee line Hoppers Crossing towards Frankston via Flinders Street
Former services Preceding station V/Line Following station Werribee Racecourse towards Warrnambool Warrnambool line Newport towards Southern Cross
Track layout Legend to Hoppers Crossing Irrigation Canal 1 3 2 Werribee River End of electrification Werribee Racecourse (Closed) Metro & V/Line boundary Galvin Road Lollypop Creek Overflow Lollypop Creek Cherry Creek to Little River Broad gauge Standard gauge, non-electrified This diagram: view talk edit

The Western standard gauge line, which operates between Melbourne and Adelaide, passes to the north of Platform 1.

History

Werribee station opened on 25 June 1857 by the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company, as part of the railway line between those two cities.^[5][6] It was designed by Frederick Kawerau, in partnership with Edward Snell, the engineer for the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company. In May 1927, the station building was heavily damaged by fire.^[4] As part of the rebuilding, a new, low-pitched roof was provided, and the surviving bluestone walls were cement rendered.^[5][6] A stone plaque, embossed with "G.&M.R. 1857", was once located on the south gable, but was lost after the fire. It has since been found, and has been built into the wall of the former Victorian Railways printing works in Laurens Street, North Melbourne.^[7]

In 1963, boom barriers replaced hand gates at the former Cherry Street level crossing, which was located at the up end of the station.^[8] In 1968, the line between Werribee and Laverton was duplicated,^[4] with duplication to Little River occurring in 1970.^[4]

In 1973, all interlocking at the station was abolished, with a signal panel provided.^[4] In 1976, boom barriers replaced hand gates at the former Werribee Street level crossing, which was located nearby in the down direction of the station.^[8] On 11 October 1979, a Seymour-Geelong goods train derailed at the station, causing extensive damage to both platforms and the station building on Platform 2 (now Platform 3).^[9][10]

In April 1983, the current island platform and underpass was provided.^[4] In November of that year, the line from Newport to Werribee was electrified.^[4][6][11] In 1987, sidings "B", "E" and "F" were abolished.^[4]

In 1997, Werribee was upgraded to a premium station.^[12]

On 27 June 2019, the Level Crossing Removal Project announced that the Cherry Street level crossing will be grade separated,^[13] with a road overpass built approximately 1 km east of the station, connecting Tarneit Road with the Princes Highway.^[14] Construction began in February 2020^[15] and, on 11 March 2021, the overpass was opened to traffic.^[16] The Cherry Street level crossing was closed to traffic on the same day,^[4] and was replaced with a pedestrian and cyclist underpass, which opened on 1 April of that year.^[17]

As part of stage 1 of the Western Rail Plan's Geelong Fast Rail project, Werribee is scheduled to be upgraded.^[18][19] Construction is set to begin in 2023.

Platforms and services

Werribee has one side platform and one island platform with two faces. It is serviced by Metro Trains' Werribee line services.^[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 Flinders Street and Frankston

Platform 3:

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

Until June 2015, V/Line Geelong and Warrnambool line services operated via Werribee, with many of the services stopping at the station. The Melbourne-bound services used Platform 2, while Geelong-bound services used Platform 3. These services now operate via the Regional Rail Link.

Transport links

CDC Melbourne operates twelve bus routes to and from Werribee station, under contract to Public Transport Victoria:

•  153 : to Williams Landing station^[21]
•  161 : to Hoppers Crossing station^[22]
•  170 : to Tarneit station^[23]
•  180 : to Tarneit station^[24]
•  181 : to Hoppers Crossing station^[25]
•  182 : to Tarneit station^[26]
•  190 : to Wyndham Vale station^[27]
•  191 : to Jubilee Estate (Wyndham Vale)^[28]
•  192 : to Wyndham Vale station^[29]
•  439 : to Werribee South^[30]
•  441 : to Riverwalk Estate (Werribee)^[31]
•  443 : to Werribee station (loop service via South Werribee)^[32]

References

1. Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005–2006 to 2018–19 17 April 2022 at the Wayback Machine Department of Transport
2. Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008–2021 17 December 2022 at the Wayback Machine Philip Mallis
3. Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) 6 March 2023 at the Wayback Machine Data Vic
4. "Werribee". vicsig.net. from the original on 1 March 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
5. "Werribee Railway Station". Wyndham: Our Story. Wyndham City Council. from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
6. "Werribee Station". Rail Geelong. from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
7. "Railway Archaeology Quiz #4 – see also illustration in Harrigan, Victorian Railways to '62". from the original on 7 May 2016. Retrieved 7 June 2015.
8. John Sinnatt (January 1990). "Level Crossing Protection". Somersault. Signalling Record Society Victoria. pp. 9–17.
9. "Delays, Derailments, etc". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. November 1979. p. 263.
10. "Delays, Derailments, etc". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. December 1979. p. 292.
11. "General News". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. August 1983. p. 206.
12. "Upgrading Eltham to a Premium Station". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1997. pp. 303–315.
13. . Victoria's Big Build. Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
14. "Road bridge design confirmed for Cherry Street removal". Victoria's Big Build. from the original on 11 November 2019. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
15. "Construction underway in Werribee". Victoria's Big Build. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
16. "Central Werribee level crossing free with 46th crossing removed". Victoria's Big Build. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
17. "New pedestrian and cyclist underpass now open at Cherry St". Victoria's Big Build. from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
18. "Faster Services For Geelong On The Way". Premier of Victoria. 21 November 2020. from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
19. "Geelong Fast Rail – About the project – Stage 1: Werribee to Newport". Victoria's Big Build – Rail Projects Victoria. from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
20. "Werribee Line". Public Transport Victoria.
21. "153 Williams Landing Station – Werribee Station via Princes Hwy". Public Transport Victoria. from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
22. "161 Hoppers Crossing Station - Werribee Station via Werribee Plaza SC". Public Transport Victoria.
23. "170 Werribee Station - Tarneit Station via Werribee Plaza SC". Public Transport Victoria.
24. "180 Werribee Station - Tarneit Station via Tarneit Rd". Public Transport Victoria.
25. "181 Werribee Station - Hoppers Crossing Station via Werribee Plaza SC". Public Transport Victoria.
26. "182 Werribee Station – Tarneit Station via Tarneit West". Public Transport Victoria. from the original on 27 March 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
27. "190 Werribee Station - Wyndham Vale Station via Ballan Rd". Public Transport Victoria.
28. "191 Werribee Station - Jubilee Estate via Greaves St". Public Transport Victoria.
29. "192 Werribee Station - Wyndham Vale Station via Black Forest Rd". Public Transport Victoria.
30. "439 Werribee Station – Werribee South via Werribee Park Mansion". Public Transport Victoria. from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.
31. "441 Werribee Station - Riverwalk Estate via Westleigh Gardens". Public Transport Victoria.
32. "443 Werribee Station – Southern Loop via South Werribee". Public Transport Victoria. from the original on 15 May 2023. Retrieved 15 May 2023.

External links

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