Caulfield railway station is a

commuter railway Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...

station on the northern boundary of

Caulfield East Caulfield East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 14 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira Local government areas ...

, a suburb of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Victoria, Australia. The station is listed on the

Victorian Heritage Register The Victorian Heritage Register (VHR) lists places deemed to be of cultural heritage significance to the State of Victoria, Australia. It has statutory weight under the Heritage Act 2017. The Minister for Planning is the responsible Minister. H ...

, and was opened on 7 May 1879. The station is named after the nearby suburb of Caulfield—located south-west of the station. The station consists of an

island platform An island platform (also center platform, centre platform) is a station layout arrangement where a single platform is positioned between two tracks within a railway station, tram stop or transitway interchange. Island platforms are popular on ...

and two

side platforms A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms ...

all accessed by a

pedestrian underpass A subway, also known as an underpass, is a grade-separated pedestrian crossing which crosses underneath a road or railway in order to entirely separate pedestrians and cyclists from motor traffic or trains respectively. Terminology In the Un ...

. There are three principal station buildings located on the platforms, including a small brick building located on Platform 1, near the main platform building. This building was provided in 1974, and originally served as a race ticket office. The station is only partially

accessible Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i.e ...

due to a steep access ramp. Caulfield railway station is served by the Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston, and

Gippsland Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...

lines, which are part of the Melbourne railway network. The station also connects to the Route 3 tram service, and routes 624 and 900 bus services. The journey to

Flinders Street railway station Flinders Street railway station is a train station located on the corner of Flinders Street, Melbourne, Flinders and Swanston Street, Swanston streets in the Melbourne city centre, central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria (Austral ...

is approximately and takes 19 minutes.

Description

Caulfield railway station is on the boundary of Caulfield East and

Malvern East Malvern East is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 13 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington local government area. Malvern East recorded a population of 22,296 at the 2021 c ...

, suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria. North of the station is

Dandenong Road Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former alignments of the hig ...

and south of the station is Normanby Road. The station is located nearby to the Caulfield Village apartment and shopping complex,

Caulfield Racecourse Caulfield Racecourse Reserve is located nine kilometres from the Melbourne CBD, on the boundary of Caulfield and Caulfield East in Melbourne's south eastern suburbs. The Reserve was set aside for three purposes, racing, recreation and a publi ...

, and

Monash University Monash University () is a public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Named for prominent World War I general Sir John Monash, it was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. The university has a ...

. The station is owned by

VicTrack VicTrack, the trading name of Victorian Rail Track Corporation, is a Government of Victoria, Victorian Government state-owned enterprise which owns all railway and tram lines, associated rail lands and other rail-related infrastructure in the ...

, a state government agency, and the station is primarily operated by

Metro Trains Metro Trains Melbourne, often known simply as Metro, is the franchise operator of the electrified suburban passenger service on the Melbourne rail network. Metro Trains Melbourne is a joint venture between Hong Kong-based MTR Corporation (60%) ...

. The station is approximately , or a 19-minute train journey, from

. The adjacent stations are Malvern station up towards Melbourne, and Carnegie and

Glen Huntly Glen Huntly is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 11 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District,down towards

Dandenong Dandenong is a southeastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, about from the Melbourne CBD. It is the council seat of the City of Greater Dandenong local government area, with a recorded population of 30,127 at the . Situated mainly ...

or Frankston. Caulfieldlstation2021

The station consists of a single

and two side platforms with a total of four platform edges. Standard in Melbourne, the platform has an asphalt surface with concrete on the edges. The platforms are approximately 160 metres (524.93 Ft) long, enough for a Metro Trains 7 car HCMT. The station features a

pedestrian subway A subway, also known as an underpass, is a grade-separated pedestrian crossing which crosses underneath a road or railway in order to entirely separate pedestrians and cyclists from motor traffic or trains respectively. Terminology In the Un ...

, accessed from the centre of the platforms by a ramp. The station features three principal station buildings, a former lamp/store room, and a signal box—all heritage listed. Distinct architectural features of the three red brick station buildings include ornate parapets and radiating bands of render around the arched openings. Original fittings that have been retained from the 1914 station reconstruction include the timber palisade gates, timber seating, and ticket office fittings. The signal box was constructed in 1920 and is also of made of red brick. It has a tiled hip roof and retains the fittings in the signal room. The station building, platform, and underpass are largely the same as when originally built, with the main change being updated signage, technology, and the addition of two new ramp canopies amongst other minor building and platform upgrades. There is a small 130 space car park on the south side of the station. The station is listed as an " assisted access" station on the Metro Trains website, as the access ramp is too steep and would require assistance for wheelchair customers to traverse.

History

Caulfield railway station was opened on 7 May 1879 with the station consisting of a single platform and track for commuter and freight service. The first station buildings were opened on the site between 1881 and 1883 to coincide with the duplication of track between the city and Oakleigh. The current station was constructed in 1913–14 to provide improved and additional facilities to what had become an increasingly busy and important location on the train network. The station rebuild was part of level crossing removal works that removed all level crossings, rebuilt all stations, and quadruplicated the corridor between

South Yarra South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Stonnington local government areas. South Yarra recorded a popul ...

and Caulfield by 1914. Later in 1922, the line was

electrified Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source. The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic history ...

using 1500 V DC overhead wires with three position signalling also introduced. The station has mostly stayed the same since 1914, with only minor upgrades taking place. In 1977, the

goods yard A goods station (also known as a goods yard or goods depot) or freight station is, in the widest sense, a railway station where, either exclusively or predominantly, goods (or freight), such as merchandise, parcels, and manufactured items, are lo ...

and loading platform was closed to traffic. This platform had been used for cargo, postal, farming, and Caulfield Racecourse horse deliveries during its operational life, however was decommissioned after the reduction in use. In 1985, a number of sidings and their associated

points Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...

and

signals In signal processing, a signal is a function that conveys information about a phenomenon. Any quantity that can vary over space or time can be used as a signal to share messages between observers. The ''IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing'' ...

were abolished. The station underwent minor upgrades in 1994 and 2015–16, and in June 1996, it was upgraded to a

Premium Station The Melbourne rail network is a passenger and freight train system in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The metropolitan passenger rail network is centred on the Melbourne CBD and consists of 222 stations across 16 lines, which ser ...

. In July 2022, the signal box at the station was closed with operations handelled remotely from the Kananook signal control centre. In conjunction with the

Metro Tunnel The Metro Tunnel (previously known during planning as the Melbourne Metro Rail Project) is a metropolitan rail infrastructure project currently under construction in Melbourne, Australia. It includes the construction of twin 9-kilometre rail tun ...

project, Caulfield station has received upgrades to its heritage structures, platforms, ticketing facilities, and signage. These projects have been undertaken to make Caulfield station into a hub and major interchange station. Despite these upgrades, many news outlets and public transport commentators have called for more drastic upgrades to the station, including making the station fully accessible, increasing connectivity to other modes of transport, and the reduction in

overcrowding Overcrowding or crowding is the condition where more people are located within a given space than is considered tolerable from a safety and health perspective. Safety and health perspectives depend on current environments and on local cultural n ...

that is often faced at the station.

Caulfield Railway Disaster

On 26 May 1926 the 6:02pm Oakleigh-bound train crashed into the rear of a stationary train at Platform 4 of Caulfield Station. Three people were killed and 170 injured in the first fatal accident to occur on Melbourne's electrified rail system. A highly politised story at the time, the Coroners verdict found that "the weight of evidence is certainly against the driver in a more serious degree, and perhaps to a lesser degree against the guard. I find that deceased died from injuries received in a collision between two electric trains at Caulfield on May 26, and I find William Stevenson Milvain and James Hargreaves guilty of manslaughter in the first degree." The court found that the two men not guilty with "the opinion of the jury, from the evidence given regarding the running of electric trains, the precautions taken to safeguard the public at this particular point are inadequate, and should be rectified immediately." A plaque was unveiled on Platform 4 in 2011 by the Friends of Cheltenham and Regional Cemeteries to commemorate the crash.

Platforms and services

Caulfield has two

side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platforms ...

s and one

with two faces. The station is currently served by Pakenham, Cranbourne, and Frankston line trains, and is also served by

V/Line V/Line is a statutory authority that operates regional passenger train and coach services in Victoria, Australia. It provides passenger train services on five commuter lines and eight long-distance routes from its major hub at Southern Cross ...

Traralgon Traralgon ( ) is a town located in the east of the Latrobe Valley in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia and the most populous city of the City of Latrobe. The urban population of Traralgon at the was 26,907. It is the largest and fastes ...

and

Bairnsdale Bairnsdale () ( Ganai: ''Wy-yung'') is a city in East Gippsland, Victoria, Australia in a region traditionally owned by the Tatungalung clan of the Gunaikurnai people. The estimated population of Bairnsdale urban area was 15,411 at Ju ...

services. Caulfield station is served by the Pakenham, Cranbourne, and Frankston lines on the metropolitan train network, and the Gippsland line on the regional V/Line network. The Pakenham line runs between Pakenham station and Flinders Street station via the

City Loop The City Loop (originally called the Melbourne Underground Rail Loop or MURL) is a mostly-underground and partly surface-level subway and rail system in the central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The Loop includes ...

. Similarly, the Cranbourne line also follows a similar route joining the Pakenham line at Dandenong before continuing to the city. The Frankston line runs from Frankston station south east of Melbourne, joining the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines at Caulfield station before continuing onto the

Werribee Werribee is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Wyndham local government area. Werribee recorded a population of 50,027 at the 2021 census. Werribee i ...

or Williamstown lines via

Flinders Street station Flinders Street railway station is a train station located on the corner of Flinders Street, Melbourne, Flinders and Swanston Street, Swanston streets in the Melbourne city centre, central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria (Austral ...

. The station is also serviced by V/Line's Gippsland line heading up towards Southern Cross station or down towards

stations. From 2025, the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines will run via the

before continuing onto the

Sunbury line The Sunbury Line (formerly known as Sunbury Subdivision) is a rail line owned and operated by Norfolk Southern Railway which in turn is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation. The line travels from Sunbury, Pennsylvania, to Binghamton, New Yo ...

to Sunbury. From 2029,

Airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

services will stop at Caulfield station. Platform 1: * stopping all stations and limited express services to Flinders Street,

, and Williamstown. Platform 2: * stopping all stations and limited express services to Frankston. Platform 3: * express services to Flinders Street. * express services to Flinders Street. *

services to

Southern Cross Crux () is a constellation of the southern sky that is centred on four bright stars in a cross-shaped asterism commonly known as the Southern Cross. It lies on the southern end of the Milky Way's visible band. The name ''Crux'' is Latin for c ...

(set down only). Platform 4: * stopping all stations and limited express services to Pakenham. * stopping all stations and limited express services to Cranbourne. * V/Line services to

and

(pick up only) From 2025, the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines will be connected to the

via the

, with Airport services set to begin in 2029 with the opening of the

Melbourne Airport rail link Melbourne Airport Rail is a rail link under construction from the Melbourne CBD to Melbourne Airport at Tullamarine. Since October 2022 the project has also been branded as SRL Airport. The rail link is to run through the under-construction Metr ...

Transport links

Caulfield station has one tram connection and two bus connections. The route 3/3a tram service operates from nearby Derby road up towards the city and down towards Malvern East. The station has two bus connections, route 624 from

Kew Kew () is a district in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Its population at the 2011 census was 11,436. Kew is the location of the Royal Botanic Gardens ("Kew Gardens"), now a World Heritage Site, which includes Kew Palace. Kew is a ...

to Oakleigh station and the route 900

SmartBus SmartBus is a network of bus services in the city of Melbourne, Australia. Overseen by Public Transport Victoria, the network comprises nine key cross-town and orbital bus routes around Melbourne. Key aspects of the service include more frequen ...

from Caulfield station to Stud Park Shopping Centre in

Rowville Rowville is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 27 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Knox local government area. Rowville recorded a population of 33,571 at the 2021 census. Rowvi ...

. The station does not have an accessible tram platform or a bus interchange, and instead is operated through on-street bus and tram stops. Caulfield station is also a major hub for train replacement bus and coach services due to the

junction Junction may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Junction'' (film), a 2012 American film * Jjunction, a 2002 Indian film * Junction (album), a 1976 album by Andrew Cyrille * Junction (EP), by Basement Jaxx, 2002 * Junction (manga), or ''Hot ...

located east of the station. The station has numerous train replacement bus and coach stops located north and south of the station, with the ability for the southern carpark to be converted into a transfer point. Tram connections: * :

Melbourne University The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

–

(operates as 3a on weekends and Public Holidays) Bus connections: *:

– Oakleigh station * : to Stud Park Shopping Centre (

)

References

External links

Public Transport Victoria
{{Public Transport Victoria railway stations, Cranbourne=y, Frankston=y, Pakenham=y, Eastern=y, state=collapsed Premium Melbourne railway stations Railway stations in Melbourne Railway stations in Australia opened in 1879 Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne Listed railway stations in Australia Railway stations in the City of Glen Eira Tram stops in Melbourne