South Kensington railway station

Coordinates: 37°47′59″S 144°55′33″E / 37.7997°S 144.9258°E / -37.7997; 144.9258
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For the London Underground station, see South Kensington tube station.

South Kensington
PTV commuter rail station
Eastbound view from Platform 2, May 2023
General information
LocationChilders Street,
Kensington, Victoria 3031
City of Melbourne
Australia
Coordinates37°47′59″S 144°55′33″E / 37.7997°S 144.9258°E / -37.7997; 144.9258
Owned byVicTrack
Operated byMetro Trains
Line(s)
Distance3.49 kilometres from
Southern Cross
Platforms2 side
Tracks6
Construction
Structure typeGround
ParkingYes
AccessibleYes—step free access
Other information
StatusOperational, unstaffed
Station codeSKN
Fare zoneMyki Zone 1
WebsitePublic Transport Victoria
History
Opened11 March 1891; 133 years ago (1891-03-11)
Rebuilt1975
ElectrifiedAugust 1920 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–200689,182[1]
2006–2007120,945[1] Increase 35.61%
2007–2008142,531[1] Increase 17.84%
2008–2009207,901[2] Increase 45.86%
2009–2010249,613[2] Increase 20.06%
2010–2011281,410[2] Increase 12.73%
2011–2012284,298[2] Increase 1.02%
2012–2013Not measured[2]
2013–2014338,162[2] Increase 18.94%
2014–2015342,741[1] Increase 1.35%
2015–2016394,707[2] Increase 15.16%
2016–2017398,191[2] Increase 0.88%
2017–2018406,011[2] Increase 1.96%
2018–2019412,850[2] Increase 1.68%
2019–2020304,750[2] Decrease 26.18%
2020–2021127,950[2] Decrease 58.01%
2021–2022159,950[3] Increase 25.01%
Services
Preceding station Railways in Melbourne Metro Trains Following station
Footscray
towards Werribee
 Werribee line North Melbourne
towards Frankston via Flinders Street
Footscray
towards Williamstown
 Williamstown line
     Sunbury line does not stop here
Track layout
Legend
to North Melbourne
to Arden
1
2
to
North Dynon
Rail Yard
Maribyrnong River
to Footscray
Electrified
Non-electrified
This diagram:

South Kensington railway station is located on the Werribee and Williamstown lines in Victoria, Australia. It serves the inner north-western Melbourne suburb of Kensington, and opened on 11 March 1891.[4][5]

Freight lines run to the south of the station. The closest of those lines are used by V/Line to reverse empty services from Traralgon and Bairnsdale, while the tracks further south are used by a variety of standard gauge freight operators. The lines to the east join Melbourne Yard, while those to the west are the South Kensington–West Footscray set of lines that lead to either South Dynon or West Footscray, via the Bunbury Street tunnel.

All the private sidings that formerly existed around South Kensington have now been closed. They included a siding to a large wool store to the north-east (now demolished), one to a warehouse and silos to the east (open but no longer served by rail), and two sidings to the north serving the Melbourne City Council abattoirs and Kenstore, a military warehouse complex that opened during World War II.

In 1972, the platforms were extended at the down end of the station.[6] In 1975, the present platform shelters were provided, when the station was modified to accommodate the quadruplication of the line to Footscray.[7] The disused station office, located near the entrance to the pedestrian underpass on Childers Street, was also provided around that time.[7] On 1 July of that year, parcel facilities at the station were abolished.[8] The following year, in November 1976, the quadruplicated line between South Kensington and Footscray was provided.[4]

The current configuration of the station dates from 2014, as part of the Regional Rail Link (RRL) project. The goods-only tracks immediately to the south of the station were replaced by a pair of tracks used by regional passenger services operating to and from Southern Cross. The signal box, formerly located at the up end of the down platform (Platform 2), was demolished to make way for the new RRL tracks. A mural outside the station on Childers Street was funded by the City–Maribyrnong River arm of the project, but it has since been painted over.

In 2020, in a survey conducted by the RACV, South Kensington was ranked as the worst railway station in Victoria.[9]

Platforms and services[edit]

South Kensington has two side platforms. It is served by Werribee and Williamstown trains.[10][11]

Platform 1:

Platform 2:

Gallery[edit]

  • Eastbound view from Platform 2 in July 2005
    Eastbound view from Platform 2 in July 2005

References[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South Kensington railway station, Melbourne.
  1. ^ a b c d Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Department of Transport
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Philip Mallis
  3. ^ Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
  4. ^ a b "South Kensington". vicsig.net. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  5. ^ "South Kensington Station". Rail Geelong. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  6. ^ "Way and Works". Divisional Diary. Australian Railway Historical Society. April 1972. p. 6.
  7. ^ a b "Works & Safeworking". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. November 1975. p. 260.
  8. ^ "Traffic". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1975. p. 226.
  9. ^ Jacks, Timna (10 March 2020). "No car parking, narrow platforms: Melbourne's worst train stations". The Age. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  10. ^ "Werribee Line". Public Transport Victoria.
  11. ^ "Williamstown Line". Public Transport Victoria.
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