Melbourne rail replacement buses
27 September 2020
When the *%@! hits the fan on Melbourne's rail network, buses have to be called in to operate a replacement service for passengers.
Failing rail infrastructure of Melbourne
27 September 2020
Melbourne's railway network is held together with bubblegum and duct tape - here are examples of the way that it is falling apart.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Northern group
27 September 2020
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Werribee, Altona, Williamstown, Sunbury, Craigieburn and Upfield lines that make up the Northern group.
V/Line - Regional Rail Link
23 September 2020
V/Line trains using the new Regional Rail Link tracks that have progressively come into use since December 2013.
Melbourne suburban passenger information displays
20 September 2020
Next train displays at Melbourne suburban railway stations.
Commercialising commuters
18 September 2020
For Melbourne's privatised public transport operators, they don't make money by moving people - they make money selling their captive audiences to advertisers and other commercial outfits.
Metro Tunnel rail replacement buses - Northern group
13 September 2020
Works on the Metro Tunnel portal at South Kensington and turnback platform at West Footscray have required Metro Trains services on the Sunbury and Werribee lines to be replaced by buses between North Melbourne, Sunshine and Newport, as well as V/Line services to Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo.
Car parking at Melbourne stations
31 August 2020
Myki failures and breakdowns
10 July 2020
A galley of the many ways that Melbourne's 'Myki' smartcard ticketing system can let passengers down.
Melbourne stations and infrastructure
6 July 2020
Photos of railway infrastructure in suburban Melbourne - stations, signals, and such
V/Line to Bacchus Marsh
26 June 2020
Photos of the V/Line services that run to Bacchus Marsh, taken between there and the end of the wires back at Sunshine. As well as boring old VLocities and Sprinters, loco hauled trains with A, P and N classes are also used in peak times.
IEV100 track evaluation vehicle
23 June 2020
Formerly known as EM100, IEV100 is a track evaluation vehicle that traverses the Victorian railway network to test track quality. Diesel powered, it has both standard and broad gauge bogies.
Damaged level crossing at Brooklyn
9 June 2020
Clueless truck drivers have a history of destroying the level crossing lights located at the corner of Somerville and McDonald Road in Brooklyn.
Pacific National - Melbourne standard gauge freight
3 June 2020
Pacific National standard gauge intermodal services from Adelaide and New South Wales meet at Melbourne, running via the western suburbs into the Melbourne Freight Terminal at South Dynon.
Tottenham Yard
3 June 2020
All sorts of stored and damaged wagons clogging up Tottenham Yard in Melbourne's west, with a few operational ones thrown in for good measure
Pacific National broad gauge grain trains
19 April 2020
Grain is a major freight traffic in Victoria, but drought has cut the level of traffic in recent years. Trains operate on both broad and standard gauges, with the main destinations being export terminals at Melbourne and Geelong, as well as Portland, and a number of domestic flour mills
Qube Logistics Apex quarry train
8 April 2020
The Apex train carries gravel and other quarry products from Kilmore East on the North East line, to Westall in south-eastern Melbourne, Brooklyn in western Melbourne, and North Shore in Geelong. Originally operated by Freight Australia then Pacific National, in 2016 Qube Logistics won the contract.
V/Line around Melbourne
8 April 2020
Pictures of V/line trains 'under the wires' around Melbourne and surrounding suburbs. V/line has a mix of loco-hauled and DMU-run services.
Flinders Street Station
4 April 2020
Flinders Street Station is the main suburban train station for Melbourne, Victoria
Great Southern Rail - The Overland
24 March 2020
Great Southern Rail operates 'The Overland' from Melbourne to Adelaide, via Geelong, Ararat and the Western standard gauge
Comeng Life Extension project
17 March 2020
The Comeng Life Extension project commenced in 2017 to update the interior and exterior of Melbourne's fleet of Comeng trains in order to keep them in service until 2022-27.
Sadleirs Logistics
16 March 2020
Sadleirs Logistics move freight by rail with their fleet of RLSY louvre vans, attached to Pacific National intermodal services.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Burnley group
13 March 2020
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Belgrave, Lilydale, Alamein and Glen Waverley lines that make up the Burnley group.
Stored trams at Newport Workshops
9 March 2020
With W class trams heritage listed and unable to be scrapped or exported to tram museums overseas, Newport Workshops has become a dumping ground while they wait a final home.
Newport Workshops: Downer Group and Siemens Rail
9 March 2020
Newport Workshops is the main railway heavy repair and maintenance facility in Melbourne. The eastern side is occupied by EDI Rail and Siemens, while the older buildings in West Block are occupied by heritage operators Steamrail Victoria and 707 Operations. The East Block is used as storage by VicTrack. Photos include some from a tour of the EDI section featuring the locomotive, bogie and wheel shops.
Melbourne suburban bits and pieces
9 March 2020
Photos of bits and pieces on and around Melbourne's suburban trains
Newport Workshops: Steamrail and 707 Operations
9 March 2020
Steamrail Victoria and 707 Operations have a large rolling stock fleet based at the West Block of Newport Workshops in Melbourne
Myki
6 March 2020
Photos of bits and pieces to do with Melbourne's 'Myki' smartcard ticketing system
Southbank Depot
6 March 2020
Southbank Tram Depot located on the Port Melbourne light rail line supplies trams to route 12, 30, 35 and 96.
Metro Trains Melbourne - inner suburban
6 March 2020
Metro Trains Melbourne services in the inner suburban area, covering Flinders Street Station, Southern Cross Station, the City Loop, North Melbourne and Richmond.
Metro Trains Melbourne works trains
6 March 2020
Trackwork on the Melbourne suburban rail network. Since taking over the contract to operate and maintain the system, Metro Trains Melbourne have hired wagons and locomotives from CFCLA to operate works trains. Three types of train operate: open top containers mounted to miscellaneous flat wagons for the carriage of spoil, CHOY hoppers to carry ballast, and flat wagons fitted with stanchions to carry rail or concrete sleepers.
Flinders Street Viaduct
22 February 2020
The Flinders Street Viaduct is made up of six tracks of varying ages, linking Flinders Street Station to Southern Cross Station and forming the main link between the eastern and western parts of the Victorian rail network.
Furlong Main level crossing removal project
19 February 2020
In 2015 work commenced on the grade separation of the Main Road level crossing at St Albans station, with the Furlong Road level crossing at Ginifer station later being added to the project scope.
TramTracker across Melbourne
14 February 2020
tramTRACKER screens across the Melbourne tram and rail networks provides real time departure and disruption information to passengers.
Failing infrastructure at Southern Cross Station
14 February 2020
Southern Cross Station was only finished a decade ago, but the building is already starting to fall apart
V/Line at Southern Cross Station
14 February 2020
Southern Cross Station is the main hub of V/Line passenger services from around the state
Metro Tunnel rail replacement buses - Caulfield group
14 February 2020
Works on the Metro Tunnel portal at South Yarra have required Metro Trains services on the Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston and Sandringham lines to be replaced by buses between Parliament, Caulfield and Elsternwick, as well as V/Line services to Gippsland.
Night Network Melbourne
10 February 2020
'Night Network' is the brand name for all night trains and trams across Melbourne on Friday and Saturday nights, as well as a revamped Nightrider bus service.
Melbourne broad gauge freight
8 February 2020
Miscellaneous broad gauge freight traffic through Melbourne - there isn't much these days...
Southern Cross Station
7 February 2020
Southern Cross Station is the main interstate and regional station for Melbourne. The full set of photos is at my other site, Rail Geelong.
City Loop
5 February 2020
Stations and trains around the Melbourne Underground Rail Loop (Parliament, Melbourne Central, and Flagstaff stations)
Long Island steel train
27 January 2020
The Long Island steel train serves the BHP mill at Hastings, south of Frankston. The steel is transferred from broad to standard gauge trains at the Melbourne Freight Terminal at South Dynon. In 2015 this facility replaced the Melbourne Steel Terminal, just west of North Melbourne station.
Metro Trains Melbourne - Caulfield group
21 January 2020
Metro Trains Melbourne services on the Pakenham, Cranbourne, Frankston and Sandringham lines that make up the Caulfield group.
V/Line workshops, yards and shunting
17 January 2020
Pictures of V/Line trains and carriages at the West Melbourne Depot and Dudley Street carriage yards next to Southern Cross Station, Melbourne Yard, and South Dynon.
Poor service from V/Line
15 January 2020
Clutching failure from the jaws of success - that's the V/Line way.
PTV Hubs
10 January 2020
PTV Hubs were created in 2012 following the merger of the Met Shop at Melbourne Town Hall with the Central Pass Office and Myki Discovery Centre at Southern Cross Station.
High Capacity Metro Trains at Newport Workshops
1 January 2020
The new High Capacity Metro Train (HCMT) fleet is being assembled by Downer at the Newport Workshops in Melbourne's west, with the body shells assembled by CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles in China.
Crumbling station building at Armadale
24 December 2019
A look at the crumbling citybound station kiosk at Armadale station on the Frankston/Dandenong lines, where everything is falling apart and ready to fall down onto the platform below.
Stony Point line
24 December 2019
The Stony Point line is an orphan on the Melbourne suburban network, being an isolated shuttle service without electrification. A class diesel locomotives hauling MTH carriages were the usual consist for a decade, until replaced by Sprinter railcars in 2008. Trains running the service run empty cars between Frankston and Southern Cross for maintenance