By 2025, a total of 85 level crossings will be removed around the city, improving safety, reducing congestion, and allowing more trains to run more often.
Bondi Road in Bonbeach was the 50th crossing to be eliminated. The elimination of four additional level crossings in the Chelsea and Edithvale areas brings in Victoria a total of 54 level crossing removals, bringing the Level Crossing Removal Project ahead of schedule by one year.
By lowering the Frankston line beneath the local road network and into three rail ditches, each over 1km long and up to 7m deep, a 2,000-strong team eliminated five level crossings, including Melbourne’s 50th.
Built Edithvale Road, Edithvale, Argyle Avenue, Chelsea, Bondi Road, Bonbeach – as well as the new rail link over the rail corridor at Thames Promenade, Chelsea – the crew erected four major road bridges just above the trenches.
Every project in Victoria is viewed as a chance to optimize time. Since its inception in 2015, the Level Crossing Removal Project has constructed 31 new train stations, created approximately 14 ‘Melbourne Cricket Grounds’ (MCGs) of new available land, planted over 1.9 million new plants, shrubs, and trees, and installed 40 kilometres of users’ access paths throughout Melbourne.
Since the boom gates at Edithvale, Chelsea, and Bonbeach have historically been down for up to 40% of the morning peak, producing mayor interruptions for commuters including automobiles, bicycles, and pedestrians, this strategy was viewed as significant.
Furthermore, over 40,000 travellers use the Frankston line every day, and current network plans to expand the number of trains running on the Frankston line meant that without the project, the boom gates would be down for much longer. As part of the AU$3 billion upgrading of the Frankston line, the Level Crossing Removal Project is eliminating 20 unsafe and overcrowded level crossings and establishing 13 new stations on behalf of the Victorian government by 2025.
