Wikipedia

Bell railway station, Melbourne

Bell railway stationis acommuter railwaystation located in the north-eastern suburb ofPrestoninMelbourne,Victoria, Australia.[6]The station opened on 8 October 1889, with the former ground level station closed and demolished in May 2022 and the currentelevatedstation provided in September 2022 by theLevel Crossing Removal Project.[7]The station initially opened as "Preston-Bell Street" upon its opening in 1889, then it was given its current name of "Bell" on 1 August 1905.

Bell
PTVcommuter railstation
Eastern facade, exterior and landscaping of Bell station, August 2024
General information
LocationGarnet Street,
Preston,Victoria3072
City of Darebin
Australia
Coordinates37°44′44″S145°00′01″E/ 37.7456°S 145.0003°E/-37.7456; 145.0003
Owned byVicTrack
Operated byMetro Trains
Line(s)Mernda
Distance11.70 kilometres from
Southern Cross
Platforms2side
Tracks2
ConnectionsList of bus routes in MelbourneBus
Construction
Structure typeElevated
Parking75
Bicycle facilities6
AccessibleYes—step free access
Other information
StatusOperational,premium station
Station codeBEL
Fare zoneMykiZone 1
WebsitePublic Transport Victoria
History
Opened8 October 1889;135 years ago(1889-10-08)
Rebuilt1973
5 September 2022 (LXRP)[1]
ElectrifiedJuly 1921 (1500VDCoverhead)
Previous namesPreston-Bell Street (1889–1905)
Passengers
2005–2006307,030[2]
2006–2007355,959[2] Increase15.93%
2007–2008393,114[2] Increase10.43%
2008–2009508,278[3] Increase29.29%
2009–2010549,773[3] Increase8.16%
2010–2011532,537[3] Decrease3.13%
2011–2012523,225[3] Decrease1.75%
2012–2013Not measured[3]
2013–2014433,148[3] Decrease17.2%
2014–2015422,536[2] Decrease2.45%
2015–2016462,990[3] Increase9.57%
2016–2017477,003[3] Increase3.02%
2017–2018541,111[3] Increase13.44%
2018–2019530,900[3] Decrease1.88%
2019–2020444,100[3] Decrease16.35%
2020–2021170,000[3] Decrease61.7%
2021–2022132,450[4] Decrease22.08%
2022–2023262,500[5] Increase98.19%
Services
Preceding station Railways in MelbourneMetro Trains Following station
Thornbury
towardsFlinders Street
 Mernda line Preston
towardsMernda
Track layout
Legend
toThornbury
1
2
toPreston

Bell is an elevatedpremium station,consisting of twoside platformsconnected bystaircases,liftsand a ground levelconcourse.The station fully complies with theDisability Discrimination Act 1992and isaccessibleas there is a lift connecting to the ground level concourse and the station platforms on either side.[8]

The station is owned byVicTrack,a state government agency and the station is operated byMetro Trains Melbourne.Preston station is currently served by theMernda line,part of theMelbourne railway network.[6]Additionally, the station is also served by fourbus routes,it includesDysonsbus routes 513, 514, 552 and 553. The station is approximately 9 km (5.6 mi) or around a 23 minute train ride toFlinders Street.[9]

Description

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The elevated railway leading up to Bell station and the northern entrance (top), the station features a concourse and landscaping area.

Bell railway station is located in the north-eastern suburb ofPrestonin Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The station is owned byVicTrack,a state government agency and the station is operated byMetro Trains Melbourne.[6]The station is 9 km (5.6 mi) or around a 23 minute train ride toFlinders Street.[9]The adjacent stations areThornbury stationuptowards Flinders Street andPreston stationdowntowardsMernda.[9]

The station consists of two side platforms with two edges. As is standard in Melbourne, the platform has an asphalt surface with concrete on the edges. The island platform is approximately 160 m (524 ft 11 in) long, long enough for a 7 carHigh Capacity Metro Train.[10]The station features a ground level concourse, accessible from the elevated station platform via a lift and stairs.[8]

The station building, concourse and platform largely stayed the same since the station was rebuilt in 2022.[6]The station is listed as fully accessible on the Metro Trains website, as there are lifts and accessible features available at the station.[8]

History

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Original ground level station (1888-2022)

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Former ground level station platforms, prior to its 2022 rebuild

Bell station opened on 8 October 1889, when theInner Circle linewas extended fromNorth FitzroytoReservoir,Bell station is named after nearbyBell Street,itself named after Francis Bell, a landowner inCoburgwho had a property namedBell Manor.[11][12]

It was located adjacent to the former Bell Streetlevel crossing,which was provided withboom barriersin 1969, replacinginterlocked gates.[13]

The station once had agoods yard,which was removed in 1986, leaving only asidingat the up end of the station.[14]

On 17 April 1988, the double lineblock signalling systembetween Bell and Reservoir was abolished, and replaced withautomatic three position signalling.[15]Also in that month, pedestrian gates were provided at the former Bell Street level crossing, in combination with the road boom barriers.[15]

On 25 August 2008, Bell was upgraded to apremium station.[16]

Level Crossing Removal Project

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The western facade (top), The station entrance, building and landscaping (middle), Interior of the station building leading out to the northern entrance (bottom)
The station rebuilt by the LXRP in 2022 features colour glass stained windows on the western and eastern sides of the facade, the station has lighting and staircases on both sides

In January 2016, theLevel Crossing Removal Projectannounced that the Bell Street level crossing would be removed bygrade separation.At the time, it had not been decided how the separation would be achieved,[17]but therail-overoption was later chosen.[18]In February 2021, major construction began.[19]

On 17 May 2022, Oakover Road and Bell Street level crossings and equipment were eliminated and on the same night, the ground level station were closed and demolished.[20][21]On 30 May 2022, the first part of the new elevated railway opened with only a single track while the second track was under construction. This was temporary until 5 September 2022 when the rebuilt station opened.[22][7]

Platforms and services

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AnX'Trapolis 100train on a Flinders Street-bound service idle at Platform 1, July 2023 (top), Platform 1 at Bell station looking southbound, September 2022 (middle), Platform 2 at Bell station looking northbound, August 2024 (bottom)

Bell has twoside platforms.The station is currently served by the Mernda line, part of the metropolitan railway network.[9]The Mernda line runs fromMernda station,north-east of Melbourne, joining with theHurstbridge lineatClifton Hill stationbefore travelling through Flinders Street station and back through theCity Loop.[9]

Platform 1:

Platform 2:

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Dysonsoperatesfour bus routesvia Bell station, under contract toPublic Transport Victoria:

References

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  1. ^"Modern stations at Preston just weeks away".Victoria's Big Build.5 August 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 1 March 2023.Retrieved5 May2023.
  2. ^abcdEstimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19Archived17 April 2022 at theWayback MachineDepartment of Transport
  3. ^abcdefghijklRailway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021Archived17 December 2022 at theWayback MachinePhilip Mallis
  4. ^Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries)Archived6 March 2023 at theWayback MachineData Vic
  5. ^Annual metropolitan train station entries 2022-23Data Vic
  6. ^abcd"Bell Station".Metro Trains Melbourne.Retrieved5 November2024.
  7. ^ab"New stations open to passengers today in Preston".Victoria's Big Build. 5 September 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 23 September 2022.Retrieved23 September2022.
  8. ^abc"Access Guide".Metro Trains Melbourne.Retrieved2 November2024.
  9. ^abcde"Mernda line".Public Transport Victoria.Retrieved5 November2024.
  10. ^"How long is a railway station platform?".Daniel Bowen.20 January 2019.Archivedfrom the original on 4 January 2023.Retrieved15 November2024.
  11. ^"Bell Street Bridge"(PDF).Merri-bek City Council.Archived(PDF)from the original on 20 December 2022.Retrieved5 May2023.
  12. ^First, Jamie (7 January 2014)."The A-Z story of Melbourne's suburbs".Herald Sun.Archivedfrom the original on 26 December 2022.Retrieved4 February2023.
  13. ^John Sinnatt (January 1990). "Level Crossing Protection".Somersault.Signalling Record Society Victoria. pp. 9–17.
  14. ^"General News".Newsrail.Australian Railway Historical Society.July 1986. p. 213.
  15. ^ab"Works".Newsrail.Australian Railway Historical Society. July 1988. p. 220.
  16. ^"Bell Station Becomes a Premium Stop for Commuters".Media Release: Premier of Victoria, Australia.premier.vic.gov.au. 25 August 2008.Archivedfrom the original on 29 October 2008.Retrieved27 August2008.
  17. ^Carey, Adam (31 January 2016)."End of the line for older Melbourne stations being torn down and rebuilt".The Age.Archivedfrom the original on 6 January 2023.Retrieved15 February2020.
  18. ^"Bell Street, Preston".Level Crossing Removal Project.Archivedfrom the original on 27 February 2020.Retrieved15 February2020.
  19. ^"Full steam ahead at Preston".Victoria's Big Build.Archivedfrom the original on 28 March 2022.Retrieved5 May2023.
  20. ^"Getting the new Preston rail bridge ready for trains".Victoria's Big Build.16 May 2022.Retrieved8 August2024.
  21. ^"Preston boom gate free".Victoria's Big Build.20 May 2022.Retrieved8 August2024.
  22. ^"Modern stations at Preston just weeks away".Victoria's Big Build.5 August 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 1 March 2023.Retrieved5 May2023.
  23. ^"513 Eltham - Glenroy via Lower Plenty".Public Transport Victoria.Retrieved27 October2024.
  24. ^"514 Eltham - Glenroy via Greensborough".Public Transport Victoria.Retrieved27 October2024.
  25. ^"552 North East Reservoir - Northcote Plaza via High Street".Public Transport Victoria.Archivedfrom the original on 29 April 2023.Retrieved5 May2023.
  26. ^"553 Preston - West Preston via Reservoir".Public Transport Victoria.Retrieved27 October2024.
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