Welshpool was a railway station on the

Transperth Transperth is the public transport system for Perth and surrounding areas in Western Australia. It is managed by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), a state government organisation, and consists of train, bus and ferry services. Bus operat ...

network. It was located on the Armadale and Thornlie lines, 9.5 kilometres from

Perth Station Perth Station was an ESTRACK Earth station in Australia, located at the Perth International Telecommunications Centre in the suburb of Cullacabardee. It has been retired from service in December, 2015 and has been replaced by the New Norcia ...

serving the suburbs of

Welshpool Welshpool ( ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales, historically in the Historic counties of Wales, county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn. The c ...

and

Bentley Bentley Motors Limited is a British designer, manufacturer and marketer of Luxury vehicle, luxury cars and Sport utility vehicle, SUVs. Headquartered in Crewe, England, the company was founded by W. O. Bentley (1888–1971) in 1919 in Crickle ...

, Western Australia. The station closed on 20 November 2023 as part of the

Victoria Park-Canning Level Crossing Removal Project The Victoria Park-Canning Level Crossing Removal Project is a project by the Government of Western Australia to elevate part of the Armadale line, thereby removing six level crossings and rebuilding five stations to modern standards. The pr ...

, as it was located too close to the nearby Leach Highway bridge for a new station to be built.

History

Welshpool Station opened in 1889 as one of the original stations on the

Armadale line The Armadale line is a partially-closed suburban railway service in Perth, Western Australia, operated by the Public Transport Authority as part of the Transperth system. The Armadale line is long, and starts at Perth station, heading south ...

. As early as the 1930s the location was concern for railway crossing safety. During the Second World War, it was considered as a suitable location for a proposed munitions factory. Welshpool Station was planned to be closed under the original 1999 South West Metropolitan Railway Master Plan for the Armadale line branch route of the

Mandurah line The Mandurah line, also known as the Southern Suburbs Railway, is a suburban railway line and service in Western Australia, linking Perth's central business district (CBD) with Mandurah to the south. Operated by the Public Transport Authority ( ...

to enable the construction of a bridge over Welshpool Road instead of the current level crossing. However, with the change in route alignment, the closure was no longer necessary at that point in time.

Closure

The station closed on 20 November 2023 as part of a Metronet project for the removal of

level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, o ...

s on the Armadale line. The project involves the removal of the Welshpool Road level crossing. Because Welshpool Station does not have high patronage, and it is too close to Welshpool Road and the

Leach Highway Leach Highway is a east-west arterial highway in the southern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, primarily linking Kewdale, Western Australia, Kewdale and Perth Airport with the city of Fremantle. It is allocated State Route 7 and is a dual ...

bridge, it was determined that it was not possible to remove the Welshpool Road level crossing without closing Welshpool Station. More car bays will be added to the new Queens Park and Oats Street stations to compensate for the closure of the station, additionally Oats Street station will move slightly south to provide another transport option for the Welshpool area.

Services

Welshpool Station was served by

Armadale and Thornlie line services. Usually, Armadale Line trains skipped the station with the station being primarily served by Thornlie Line trains. However, on Sundays and at night the station was additionally served by Armadale Line trains. The station saw 116,681 passengers in the 2013-14 financial year.

Platforms

References

Bibliography

External links

Gallery
History of Western Australian Railways & Stations {{Public Transport Authority of Western Australia railway stations, Armadale=y, Thornlie=y, state=collapsed Railway stations in Australia opened in 1889 Railway stations in Australia closed in 2023 Disused railway stations in Western Australia Armadale line Thornlie–Cockburn line