Southern Cross railway station
Southern Cross | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Inter-city, regional and commuter train station | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
.jpg) Southern Cross main entrance | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Spencer Street, Docklands, Victoria 3008 Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 37°49′06″S 144°57′09″E / 37.8184°S 144.9524°E | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Owned by | IFM Investors | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Operated by | Civic Nexus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Line(s) | Metropolitan:
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| Platforms | 16 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tracks | 22 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Train operators |
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| Connections |
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| Construction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Structure type | Ground level with mezzanine | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | 12 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Other information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Premium station | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Station code | SSS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fare zone | Myki Zone 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Website | Southern Cross Station Pty Ltd Public Transport Victoria | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | 17 January 1859 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 1960s and 2000s | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Electrified | Platforms 8 to 14 only | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Previous names | Spencer Street | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2019–2020) | 19.967 million[3][4][5]  23% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2020–2021) | 6.653 million[3][4][5] 67% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2021–2022) | 8.905 million[3][4][5]  34% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2022–2023) | 15.635 million[3][4][5] 76% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Passengers (2023–2024) | 20.161 million[3][4][5] 29% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Building details | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Status | Complete | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Type | Railway station terminus | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction started | 2002 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Completed | 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost | $700m | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 23 metres (75 ft) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Technical details | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Size | 60,000 square metres (650,000 sq ft) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Design and construction | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Architect | Nicholas Grimshaw | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Architecture firm | Grimshaw Architects Jackson Architecture | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Developer | Civic Nexus consortium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Engineer | WSP Global | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Awards and prizes | Royal Institute of British Architects' Lubetkin Prize – most outstanding building outside the European Union | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Southern Cross station, also known as Spencer Street station until 2005, is a railway station in Melbourne, Australia. Southern Cross is on Spencer Street, between Collins and La Trobe streets, in the city's west. A stadium, named the Docklands Stadium is 500 metres away from the station. Victoria Harbour is also close by.
Southern Cross serves the City Loop lines. Those are the Mernda, Hurstbridge, Frankston, Craigieburn, Upfield, Lilydale, Belgrave, Alamein and Glen Waverley lines. In addition, the Werribee, Laverton (Altona) and Williamstown lines stop here as well. They are all part of the Melbourne rail network.
Suburban trains are not the main thing in this station, as it is mainly the central station of V/Line's regional services outside Melbourne, as well as NSW TrainLink services to Sydney, using the XPT train.
Southern Cross station has two concourses and 16 platforms in total: six suburban platforms and ten regional platforms. The first one is at Bourke Street and the other is at Collins Street. They connect to all the platforms using stairs, escalators and lifts. Public toilets and food courts are also provided inside the station.
History
Southern Cross opened on as the name Spencer Street station in 1859, named after the street that it was on.[6] This station opened five years after Flinders Street station. The two stations were not linked until 1894.[7]
In 1960, the line to Sydney was under construction. Because of this, a building replaced the iron shed there, and Platform 1 was built. There was a mural inside painted by Harold Freeman, which has been moved to the DFO nearby.[8]
Redevelopment
Southern Cross was rebuilt and redeveloped by Civic Nexus. The new station was designed by Grimshaw Architects and Jackson Architecture.[9]
The design included a wave-shaped roof designed to filter out diesel air, a new entrance on Collins Street, a new regional bus interchange, food courts, shops inside the station and a separate shopping centre between Bourke Street and La Trobe Street.
Construction began in October 2002 and was completed in late 2006, in time for the 2006 Commonwealth Games.
In 2023, Southern Cross was seen as the second most busiest station on Melbourne's train network, with 20 million people using the station. [3][4][5]
In 2024, the first air quality report for the station was shared, showing that the roof design was weak, because nitrogen dioxide levels 90 times higher than World Health Organisation standards was recorded inside the station.[10]
Platforms
Platforms are marked with numbers from the east side of the station to the western side.
Platforms 1-8, 15 and 16 are regional platforms. Platforms 9-14 are metro platforms.
Platforms 2-7 and 15-16 is split into two sections, marking the concourse in half. One is an A section, and the other is the B section. Additionally, Platform 8 has an A, B and an S (for South) section.
Regional train platforms
| Southern Cross regional platforms | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | Line | Destination | Service Pattern | ||
| 1 & 2 | <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Albury line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Seymour line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Shepparton line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Geelong line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Warrnambool line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Ballarat line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Ararat line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Maryborough line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Bendigo line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Echuca line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Swan Hill line |
Seymour, Shepparton, Albury, Geelong, South Geelong, Marshall, Waurn Ponds, Warrnambool, Wendouree, Ararat, Maryborough, Kyneton, Bendigo, Epsom, Eaglehawk, Echuca, Swan Hill, Adelaide, Sydney | All stations and limited express services | ||
| 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 | <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Seymour line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Shepparton line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Geelong line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Warrnambool line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Ballarat line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Ararat line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Maryborough line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Bendigo line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Echuca line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Swan Hill line |
Seymour, Shepparton, Geelong, South Geelong, Marshall, Waurn Ponds, Warrnambool, Wendouree, Ararat, Maryborough, Kyneton, Bendigo, Epsom, Eaglehawk, Echuca, Swan Hill | All stations and limited express services | ||
| 15 & 16 | <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Seymour line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Shepparton line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Geelong line <span style="background-color:#Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.; border:0.1em solid #Lua error: expandTemplate: template "V/Line color" does not exist.;"> Warrnambool line |
Seymour, Shepparton, Geelong, South Geelong, Marshall, Waurn Ponds, Warrnambool, Wendouree, Ararat, Maryborough, Kyneton, Bendigo, Epsom, Eaglehawk, Echuca, Swan Hill, Traralgon, Bairnsdale | All stations and limited express services | ||
Metro trains
| Southern Cross metro platforms | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | Line | Where to? | Stopping pattern | Using | |
| 9 | Mernda line Hurstbridge Line |
Epping, Mernda, Macleod, Greensborough, Eltham, Hurstbridge | All station trains and express (Skip-stop) trains | City Loop, always. The Mernda and Hurstbridge lines go to Jolimont station and Clifton Hill station before they split off afterwards. | |
| 10 | Alamein line Belgrave Line Glen Waverley Line Lilydale Line |
Flinders Street, Glen Waverley, Alamein, Blackburn, Ringwood, Lilydale, Belgrave | All station trains and express trains | City Loop or Flinders Street to Richmond. At Burnley station, the Glen Waverley line splits off. At Camberwell station, the Alamein line splits off. Finally, at Ringwood station, the Belgrave and Lilydale lines split off. The trains use the City Loop normally but during weekday mornings they go Richmond. | |
| 11 | Craigieburn line Upfield Line |
Craigieburn, Upfield | All station trains and express trains | City Loop or Flinders Street, then after North Melbourne station the two lines seperate. The train goes to Southern Cross normally but during weekday afternoons, it uses the City Loop. | |
| 12 | Frankston line | Flinders Street, Cheltenham, Carrum, Frankston | All station trains and express trains | Flinders Street always. The train will then go to Caulfield station and leave the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines and continue to Frankston. Trains to Cheltenham and Carrum only operate during Monday to Friday and on busy hours. | |
| 13 | Werribee line | Flinders Street | All stations | Flinders Street. Trains will end at Flinders Street early only from Monday to Friday. | |
| Werribee line Williamstown line |
Sandringham | For the Williamstown line, trains always go to Sandringham. For the Werribee Line, trains go past Flinders Street to Sandringham from Monday to Friday after 7 o' clock and all day on Saturday and Sunday.
Trains going to Sandringham will follow the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Frankston lines to South Yarra before the Sandringham line goes on its separate way to Sandringham. | |||
| 14 | Werribee line | Laverton, Werribee | North Melbourne and Newport station. The line will then use the slow tracks to Altona station and arrive at Laverton station. Trains that end at Laverton only run from Monday to Friday. Otherwise the train will go to Werribee station. | ||
| Werribee | Express trains | North Melbourne and Newport. Then skips the Altona line using seperate railway tracks to go to Laverton and continues past to end at Werribee. | |||
| Williamstown line | Williamstown | All stations | North Melbourne and Newport. Then splits from the Werribee line to go to Williamstown. | ||
Nearby Transport
Trams
9 tram routes run to Southern Cross.
From the Spencer Street/Collins Street tram stop:
- Route 11 from West Preston to Victoria Harbour
- Route 12 from Victoria Gardens to St Kilda
- Route 48 from Balwyn North to Victoria Harbour
- Route 109 from Box Hill to Port Melbourne
- From the Southern Cross Station/Collins Street tram stop:
- Route 11 from West Preston to Victoria Harbour
- Route 48 from Balwyn North to Victoria Harbour
From Harbour Esplanade tram stops:
- Route 35 City Circle
- Route 70 from Docklands to Wattle Park
- Route 75 Docklands Stadium to Vermont South
From the Spencer Street/Bourke Street tram stop:
- Route 86 from RMIT Bundoora to Waterfront City Docklands
- Route 96 from East Brunswick to St Kilda Beach
Buses
The station is also linked to 3 Melbourne Kinetic bus routes: 232 from the Queen Victoria Market to Altona North and 235-237 bus routes that go from the Queen Victoria Market to Fishermans Bend.
Coaches
Coaches are regional buses. They are operated by V/Line and depart from the nearby coach terminal.
Coaches go to Mildura, Mount Gambier, Barham, Deniliquin, Mansfield, Cowes, Inverloch, Yarram and more.[11]
References
- ↑ Weekday and quiet hours only
- ↑ Special events only
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Annual regional train station patronage (station entries)". Data Vic. Victorian Department of Transport and Planning. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Michell, Edwin (2024). "Regional NSW station patronage".
- ↑ Infrastructure – Southern Cross Vicsig
- ↑ "Department of Infrastructure: Early history of Southern Cross Station". Archived from the original on 4 June 2009. Retrieved 23 May 2026.
- ↑ Perin, Victoria (6 May 2017). "Harold Freedman: Artist for the People". Memo Review. 2017 (18).
- ↑ The roof transporting us to tomorrow The Age, 25 March 2005]
- ↑ Kinsella, Elise; Longbottom, Jessica; Chwasta, Madi; Dunstan, Joseph (6 March 2024). "Melbourne's Southern Cross Station is notorious for its smell — now air quality data shows why". ABC News. Retrieved 1 September 2024.
- ↑ "Timetable list". V/Line – Regional public transport for Victoria. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
Other websites
- Southern Cross Station project Archived 2009-05-30 at the Library of Congress Web Archives