Work on a second rail line between Waurn Ponds and South Geelong will begin later this year as part of a $1 billion renovation by the Australian and Victorian authorities to eliminate congestion on the system.
A full alternatives analysis was carried out as part of the project planning to find the best practicable design solution for each of the level crossing locations.
The South Geelong to Waurn Ponds Duplication is part of a $1 billion federal-state rail upgrading project that would duplicate 8 kilometers of track, improve station signalling, and provide more train services.
Other works also include Waurn Ponds Station Upgrade and a stabling and repair facilities at Waurn Ponds, which will allow passengers on Victoria’s largest regional rail route to have more regular and dependable service.
Trains will be able to pass each other in these portions thanks to the additional platforms and track at both stations, allowing services to recover faster from unforeseen delays. It will also allow Marshall and Waurn Ponds stations to have five train services per hour during peak hours and three per hour during peak hours.
At Marshall station, there will be landscaped forecourts and accessible pedestrian overpasses, as well as 200 new parking spaces.
Passengers will have secure and convenient connections thanks to new pedestrian crossings that have ramps and elevators for persons using mobility aids or pushing prams. Passengers will be able to enter both stations using the new second platform doors. More lighting and CCTV, as well as additional shelter and better navigation, are among the station’s other enhancements.
The level crossings at Fyans Street and Surf Coast Road will also be removed, with new elevated rail structures built to reduce congestion and improve security for the more than 36,000 automobiles that travel through all of these areas each day, according to Victorian Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Jacinta Allan.
Both locations are complicated, with numerous environmental, community, and technological factors to evaluate and manage. At both locations, an elevated rail bridge has been chosen as the most practicable design solution for reducing construction disruption to road and rail users, reducing flooding hazards, and allowing for landscaping and green open space. The primary elements considered to select the design solution are outlined below.
Between South Geelong and Waurn Ponds, around 8 kilometres of track will be duplicated.
New station buildings and forecourts, second platforms, and accessible pedestrian overpasses are being built at South Geelong and Marshall stations.
Level crossings at Fyans Street and Surf Coast Highway will be removed and replaced with elevated rail bridges.
Upgrades to the signalling between South Geelong and Waurn Ponds.
more than 5 kilometres of new shared user routes connecting to existing trails and walks, forming a continuous link between South Geelong and Waurn Ponds a business case to identify the infrastructure needed to supply even more services, such as renovations to the rail tunnel between Geelong and South Geelong and the rail line over the Barwon River
