Some background

Locomotives all look the same, so it’s not like you can tell a train driver “you’re driving the red one today” – you need a way to tell them apart. Enter a favourite topic of trainspotters – numbering systems.

Each locomotive gets a number – and most of the time locomotives of the same type get numbered in the same series of numbers, and either the first few digits or some letters in front indicate the ‘class’ of locomotives.

And from there the numbers get to track maintenance for a given unit, and allocations of locomotives to a given service. Initially these processes were were all paper based, and undertaken by an army of clerks back at head office.

PROV image VPRS 12903/P0001, 287/09

But in the 1970s there was something new sweeping the world of business – computers.

Photo by Oliver.obi, via Wikimedia Commons

And over time, railways around the world also decided to adapt their existing processes to the new world – but not without trouble.

Number shuffling at Australian National

In 1980s the Australian National Railways Commission – operator of freight and passenger trains from Adelaide towards Western Australia, Alice Springs, Broken Hill and Victoria – introduced the ‘Traffic Information Management System’ (TIMS) to make their railway more efficient.

Photo by John Masson, via Wikimedia Commons

Their 1984/1985 annual report stating

Implementation of AN’s computerised wagon monitoring system will dramatically increase utilisation of wagons and locomotives. A sub-system to maintain a comprehensive on-line rollingstock inventory was implemented in October 1984. Partial implementation of the remainder of the system occurred in July 1985, with full implementation due in December 1985.

As part of this, ‘check digits‘ were added to the existing fleet number of each locomotive, wagon and carriage, so that if a number was accidentally mistyped into the new system, the computer would know it was wrong, and prompt the user to correct it.

Australian National annual report 1985/1986

But there was also a problem – locomotives inherited from the South Australia Railways had been numbered as numeric ‘classes’ – where the class leader had the same number as the class name, for example ‘830’ class locomotive ‘830’ and ‘930’ class locomotive ‘930’ – and the new computer system was not able to handle the duplication.

So the solution for Australian National – renumber the class leaders! The next spare numbers were at the end of the existing number groups, so locomotive ‘830’ was renumbered to ‘875’, locomotive ‘930’ became ‘967’, and so on..

And a real doozy in New Zealand

The New Zealand Railways were a relatively early adopter of computers, with their ‘Traffic Monitoring System’ introduced in the 1970s.

Photo by GPS 56 from New Zealand, via Wikimedia Commons

Wikipedia has this to say about it.

On 12 February 1979, NZR introduced a computerised “Traffic Monitoring System” (TMS) nationwide. Implementation was completed in December 1980.

A pilot scheme of TMS began in 1973 on the Palmerston North – Gisborne Line between Woodville and Gisborne. TMS resulted in an 8 per cent improvement in wagon utilisation. In 1977, NZR decided to implement the system out across the entire network. Using dual IBM System/370 systems, one in active standby mode, the TMS system became a centralised system for tracking all wagon and locomotive movements.

As a result of the introduction of TMS, NZR identified that it could reduce its total wagon requirements by 10 per cent of its 1980 fleet, resulting in the withdrawal of many older wagon types. NZR later sold its expertise and some of the TMS software to Victorian Railways in Victoria, Australia and the State Rail Authority (SRA) in New South Wales, Australia.

But the historical New Zealand Railways locomotives classification scheme that relied on superscript characters (eg: D^A and E^W) didn’t work on the new computer system, so the classes were changed to machine readable uppercase characters (eg: DA and EW).

But that wasn’t the only change – the decision was also made the renumber the entire locomotive fleet, across new number groups, with new numbers, in a system completely unintelligible at first glance – four digit non-sequential numbers. An example is the DC class locomotives of 1979 – 85 were built as D^C 1551 through 1599, but now operate as DC 4006 – 4951. So what gives?

The first secret behind the system is the meaning of each digit – the final one is a check number, giving DC class locomotives 400 through 495 – which sounds somewhat sensible, other than the fact only 85 DC class locomotives were ever built, so there’s 10 extra numbers in the series.

The answer to that mystery – I found it on a British railway forum, of all places.

The New Zealand check-digit system doesn’t work like the UIC/EVN system – it’s more complex, not least because it has to cope with vehicle classes which are letters, and variable-length numbers. The way it was explained to me (nearly 20 years ago, so it’s a bit hazy now) is that the check digit calculation can come up with a number between 0 and 10 – not 0 and 9 like the EVN. When it’s a 10, there’s no way to handle it in the computer system, so that number is just rejected and they skip to the next one. So, yes, there are gaps in the fleet number sequence, and that’s just how the system works. The New Zealanders are used to it, and don’t expect to have a continuous list of numbers.

So that’s two layers on indirection in the New Zealand rolling stock numbering system – my brain hurts.

Further tools

• Railways of Australia check letter calculator at Comrails
• TMS check digit calculator at NZ Rail Photos

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To be accurate, the message wasn’t complete gibberish – but {"Colour": "#009639", "text": "Flinders Street"} – JSON formatted data for ‘Flinders Street’ and hex colour code for green ‘#009639‘.

Many people guessed that the cause of this bug is “colour” vs “color” spelling, with CSS requiring the use of the American ‘color’ spelling, but it’s actually a much more obscure bug…

The backstory

When first delivered back in the early-2000s, the fleet of Siemens trains in Melbourne were fitted with a low resolution LED matrix display to show the names of upcoming stations.

However two decades later this passenger information and communication system was approaching the end of life, so an upgraded system was installed in two stages – the first being the new hardware being installed, but operating the same as the previous system, but on the new high resolution LED displays.

And followed by stage two – a software change to show a dynamic route map to passengers.

But there was one problem – the Siemens trains are 3-car sets, coupled together to form a 6-car train in normal operation, with communication signals sent across the coupler.

But if an train with the updated dynamic route map software leads an unmodified train, the payload for other half of the train to display is JSON formatted, which an unmodified train doesn’t know how to handle, and so blindly spits out the gibberish to the passenger facing displays.

At least the data structure they chose wasn’t XML – or even worse, YAML.

A Twitter related footnote

I originally posted the above video to Twitter, went to bed, and realised a few days later it had 830,000 views, 21,000 likes 1,900 retweets and 83 comments against it.

I didn’t notice it at the time because I’m not a heathen who enables notifications on their phone.

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The clues all add up:

• Australia Post mail box, and post office;
• Herald Sun sign on shop;
• a leafy green road with two lane road, wide enough to overtake on;
• and green painted traffic signal masts, which Whitehorse City Council loves to do.

So somewhere in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne – but where?

Unfortunately this is the first time my “nothing good happens east of Punt Road” policy has failed me, so I had to phone a friend – who suggested the Mitcham Road shopping strip in Mitcham.

And boom – there it is.

Google Street View

But try as I may, I couldn’t find the same parked cars found in the Google reCAPTCHA scene in the images captured by Google Street View, no matter what date I picked, which leads to the question – where is Google getting their reCAPTCHA images from?

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Going digging

Hawthorn station certainly looks old enough.

And the roof over platform 2 and 3 is quite ornate.

But this PROV image shows that the platform hasn’t always had a roof.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P000 H 4668

And the claims as to the provenance of the structure are a little loose – for instance, this web page straight out of the 1990s.

The station buildings are weatherboard and are part of the original buildings used at Flinders Street.

The Wikipedia page on the station isn’t much better:

In 1890, an island platform was provided to accommodate the newly opened branch line to Kew, using a canopy from the original Flinders Street station.

But I finally got somewhere when I opened the ‘Hawthorn Railway Station Complex’ entry on the Victorian Heritage Register.

Hawthorn Railway Station first opened on 13 April 1861. The central portion of the timber building on Platform 1 dates from the early 1880s, and additions have been constructed at both ends of this building.

After the railway line from Hawthorn was extended to Camberwell in 1882 a second platform was built at Hawthorn to accommodate the duplicated track. A two-station single track branch line linking Hawthorn to Kew opened in 1887, and following this the present-day island Platform 2 and 3 was constructed in 1890.

The large canopy on this island platform, originally located at Flinders Street Station over the St Kilda and Port Melbourne platforms, was dismantled and then rebuilt at Hawthorn on its Platform 2 and 3 in 1901.

Paydirt.

And over to Trove

I then headed over to newspaper archives at Trove, and the story became clearer.

From The Age 16 February 1901 spelled out the what.

The following tenders have been accepted by the Railway department:

Taking down iron verandah at Port Melbourne platform, Flinders Street station, and reerecting portion at Hawthorn station,
A. Challingsworth,
£599 12/0

And The Argus explained the why:

Some months ago the Commissioner of Railways promised to provide proper shelter accommodation at the Hawthorn railway station and yesterday he accepted the tender of Mr A Challingsworth for taking down the iron verandah over the present Port Melbourne platform at the Princes Bridge station and re-erecting portion of it at the Hawthorn station.

The dismantling of the Port Melbourne platform is the first step towards re-modelling the Flinders Street Station in accordance with the scheme for the new central railway station. Passengers on the Port Melbourne line may shortly be transferred to another platform while the proposed alterations are being effected.

The material to be employed to cover in the Hawthorn station will, Mr Mathieson states, last for many years to come, and the new verandah will extend well down the platform beyond the overhead footbridge, which will also be enclosed.

By June 18 work on the island platform had been completed.

The time which has elapsed since the railway authorities began to cover the island platform at the Hawthorn station with a shelter shed and the fact, that no steps have been taken to elect a similar roof over the southern platform, has led to the belief that the necessity for it has been overlooked . The deputy Commissioner states, however, that the footbridge connecting the Kew and Camberwell lines and the up platform will also be covered in before Christmas.

With the rest done by July.

The shelter over the “up” platform and Kew side of the Hawthorn railway station is now almost completed. The work was started about three months ago, but was considerably delayed
owing to a difficulty in getting the proper lengths of roofing iron. The structure affords an excellent shelter from the rain and will undoubtedly prove a great boon to the travelling public in wet weather.

But where at Flinders Street did it come from?

Today there is no “St Kilda and Port Melbourne platforms” at Flinders Street Station – back in the 1980s both railways were converted to light rail, and are now tram routes 96 and 109.

But the platforms still exist, immortalised in painted tiles at the entrance to platform 10 and 11.

But the station we’re interested in is the “old” Flinders Street Station.

SLV image ID 1742413

This photo from 1888 shows platform shelters, but they don’t match the ones found at Hawthorn.

SLV image ID 3250858

But this aerial view of the station from the north-west is much more useful.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P0001 H 2825

The roof over what is now platform 8 and 9 looks a lot like the one now at Hawthorn.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P0001 H 2825

And this lower angle view from the Swanston Street bridge confirms it.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P0001 H 2770

The fine ironwork detail and mansard roof line clearly visible.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P0001 H 2770

So that factoid was true after all.

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Going for a ride

We start on the Melbourne side of Bacchus Marsh, looking down into the valley below.

Pass over Parwan Creek on a curved embankment.

Then into another cutting.

To finally arrive into Bacchus Marsh station.

But that was only a taste of the journey ahead – we’ve got an even bigger hill to climb.

Trains get a short respite from the climb at Maddingley, where V/Line have a stabling yard and crossing loop.

But five minutes later, you’ll see the same train again, but far above your head, and running in the other direction.

Having rounded the horseshoe curve.

Then hugging the hillside.

Don’t look down – the V/Line stabling yard is back at the bottom of the hill.

But trains still have further to climb.

Now running in a cutting hewn out of the rock.

The grades ease off again at ‘Bank Box’, where a crossing loop allows opposing trains to pass.

Then it’s off into the rugged bushland of Werribee Gorge.

A tall bridge crossing between the ridges.

Until the railway line finally rejoins level ground, and can leaves the curves behind.

So why does it curve around so much?

I’ve written about the history of the Melbourne-Ballarat railway before – born as a line headed east from Ballarat towards Ballan in 1886, and a second branch west from Sunshine towards Bacchus Marsh in 1887 – the hills outside Bacchus Marsh presented a formidable barrier.

Topographic maps showing the steep country around the Werribee Gorge.

Bacchus Marsh 1:50 000 topographic map, Geoscience Australia

A newspaper report from the period describing it as.

There still remains to be constructed that portion of the line extending from Bacchus Marsh station to Ballan, a distance of 17 miles.

The route of this section passes through most difficult country, there being a rise of over 1800ft in that distance The earthworks on this section alone will necessitate the removal of no less than 1¼ millions of cubic yards, cuttings for long distances being upwards of 40ft in depth while the embankment will be correspondingly high, in one instance more than 100ft.

These heavy earthworks result from the fact that the line has to be carried along the northern spurs of the great plain which extends from between the Werribee River and Little River to Port Phillip. The steepest gradient upon the line will be 1 in 48.

It will be seen from the figures given that the through railway is far from being an easy line to construct. The country through which it passes is so broken and difficult as to compel the provision of very large works, while the earthworks are upwards of 50 per cent greater than upon the line by way of Geelong.

And the benefit of the new line.

The present distance to be travelled by rail between Melbourne and Ballarat, by way of Geelong, is 100 miles, but when the direct line is completed that distance will be reduced to 74 miles, a saving of 26 miles been thus effected in the journey to Ballarat.

But despite all the massive earthworks, the railway still required a large horseshoe curve outside Bacchus Marsh to attack the hill.

Bacchus Marsh 1:50 000 topographic map, Geoscience Australia

But still the railway had one of the steepest grades on the Victorian rail network – a 1 in 48 climb all the way from Bacchus Marsh to just outside Ballan.

Victorian Railways grades and curves diagram

What about an alternate route?

I’ve seen it on Twitter, I’ve seen it on Reddit – but even when the railway was brand new, people asked why the railway descended into Bacchus Marsh, only to climb back out again.

There has been a question as to the wisdom of taking a fast passenger line down and up the long gradients of Bacchus Marsh to reach the township. It is alleged that the extra haulage required will be fatal to economy and fast service, and that the Ballarat and intercolonial passengers will gain only a few minutes in time, with an added risk of accident. It is contended that a route on a level could have been found encircling the Marsh, which would have secured every advantage.

It was asked again by the late W. Williams in his book “A History of Bacchus Marsh and its Pioneers“, and serialised in the Bacchus Marsh Express.

The horseshoe bend of the railway near the town is a puzzle to many. The question is asked : Why did the line undertake this acrobatic performance? Why did it not pursue its even course on the plateau?

Then follows an ominous shake of the head — “I suppose some job again,” and immaculate departmental purity suffers defilement at the hands of an undiscerning public. For a passing moment the pictorial style of diction is indulged in. I see the train like an elongated caterpillar crawling up yonder summit, with two engines before, and one behind to give a friendly help in time of need.

Straight across to the plateau is only two or three miles, and yet to reach that identical spot the concentrated procession of engines and cars has travelled a circuitous course of eight miles.
On the face of it some mistake appears to have been made, especially when it is remembered that the section is part of an interstate line, in connection with which time is the essence.
of the contract.

But taking a shorter route would have only given minor time savings.

The answer is that the exclusion of Bacchus Marsh by taking the outer route would not be compensated for by any practical gain; that the saving in distance would be only 29 chains, and that the gradients are not such as will seriously prejudice the traffic, and that of all the 17 surveys that have been made none have shown a route that did not join the selected route at the point where the question of gradient has any force.

Alternative routes having been surveyed.

The line as constructed between Parwan station and the Dog Trap reservoir is about 24 chains longer than the route surveyed via Ryan’s corner (near Parwan station) and Collie’s bridge (close to the Dog Trap reservoir), between the same points. The two lines rejoin at the road about midway between the crossing of the Parwan Creek and the Dog Trap Gully on the Ryan’s corner route; and therefore the long gradient of 1 in 48 from the Parwan Creek on towards Gordon must have been the same upon either line.

On the Ryan’s corner route the gradients would have been comparatively easy between Parwan station and the crossing of the Parwan Creek, where the steep ascending gradient of 1 in 48 commences, which is common to both routes. The length of ascending gradient of 1 in 48 upon that portion of the Ryan’s corner route between Parwan station and the Dog Trap reservoir would have been about 110 chains in length, against 240 chains of 1 in 48, and 27 chains of 1 in 50 ascending, and 90 chains of 1 in 49 and 45 chains of 1 in 50 descending gradient upon the line as constructed between the same points.

If the line had been constructed via Ryan’s corner it would have been necessary in order to accommodate Bacchus Marsh, to construct in addition a branch line to that place. And a viaduct would have been required over the Parwan Creek of similar construction to that over the Werribee River. The length of this would have, been about 300 feet, and the height about 120 feet.

A similar bend of about six miles occurs between Mitcham and Belair on the Adelaide end of the overland route. Those places are about two miles distant from each other the crow flies, but are eight
miles apart by railway line, the cause being that Mitcham is 241 feet above sea level and Belair, 1008 feet above the sea.

Now let the doubter for ever hold his peace. Abundant evidence is supplied that from an engineering point of view “the horseshoe” is valid performance, without the faintest approach to any “fishy” aroma.

The horseshoe even seen as an engineering wonder.

It was a great engineering feat to make that railway call at Bacchus Marsh, and then to scale the plateau and the glory involved in same is to be shared by three engineers, Mr Leo. Cussen, Mr. G. C. Darbyshire and Mr. W. C. Billings.

Versatile indeed was the genius of Mr. Leo Cussen, for how seldom in the one mind is there the conjunction of the literary and the mathematical faculty; but law now claims the erstwhile Engineer as one of its brightest ornaments, for in Judge Cussen we have one whose judgments are almost invariably beyond successful appeal.

But the operational cost of the line was high.

It is well known amongst railway employees that the engine drivers and guards who travel over the line dread the journey from Gordons to Bacchus Marsh, for although the distance between those stations is only 25 miles, yet there is a drop in that distance of 1536 feet, in negotiating which the brakes have to be used continuously whilst running down steep embankments and ugly looking curves.

Owing to the heavy pulls between Bacchus Marsh and Ingliston, where the line rises 1170 feet in 13 miles, it requires two engines to take the Adelaide express when heavily laden to Ballarat, and
when only only engine is used on a light train it is assisted as far as Ingliston by a “bull-dog” engine that is always stationed at Bacchus Marsh for that purpose.

Naturally the cost of haulage is unusually heavy, and will in a large measure explain the fact that last year the loss incurred in working the line was £1857.

And as trains grew bigger and heavier, the sharp curves and steep grades grew ever more limiting.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 2545

So the idea of shortening the route was brought up from time to time, such as this 1976 report on upgrading the Melbourne to Serviceton railway.

Parwan to Horseshoe Creek Deviation

This scheme, costing $1.8 million, includes construction of an 8 km long deviation between Parwan and Horseshoe Creek, bypassing Bacchus Marsh to avoid the descent to Bacchus Marsh followed by a steep climb. It also includes keeping the existing track for use by commuter trains originating from or terminating at Bacchus Marsh. A 6 minute reduction in transit time is expected for both directions of travel if the deviation is introduced. Furthermore, the reduction in transit time would render one crossing loop unnecessary.

But it took the Regional Fast Rail project to finally do something about it.

Straightening the curves over Parwan Creek in the descent into Bacchus Marsh.

With the construction of new cuttings and embankments.

VicPlan map

And a 8.2 kilometre long deviation between Millsbrook and Dunnstown.

But with the measure of success for the project being the 60 minutes “Country Express Run Time” between Melbourne and Ballarat, the tracks through the horseshoe curve and up to Bank Box were left with timber sleepers – saving the Victorian Government $404,110.

Only to end up being replaced with concrete sleepers a few years later anyway.

But since then focus has rightly moved from raw speed, to frequent and reliable trains – leading to the recently completed Ballarat Line Upgrade project, which delivered double track to Melton, and a second track and platform at Bacchus Marsh and Ballan stations.

That’s a change in focus that I can get behind.

Footnote

Here is the driver’s view of the slow climb up from Bacchus Marsh to Ballan.

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Nicole Cleary photo via The Age

On the trail

The massive pylons and quad bundle conductors look just like those on the 500 kV twin circuit Moorabool-Portland transmission line I wrote about the other month.

I’ve been a fan of this transmission line for years.

The lush green grass suggested dairy country around Mortlake, not the wheat fields of the Pleurisy Plains.

But there was one big clue – the pair of transposition towers in the background.

A transposition tower is a transmission tower that changes the relative physical positions of the conductors of a transmission line in a polyphase system. A transposition tower allows these sections to be connected together, while maintaining adequate clearance for the conductors. This is important since it distributes electrical impedances between phases of a circuit over time, reducing the problem of one conductor carrying more current than others.

Double-circuit lines are usually set up with conductors of the same phase placed opposite each other. This reduces the reactance due to mutual inductance; the reactance of both circuits together is less than half that of one circuit. For example, a section of a line may be (top-to-bottom) phases A-B-C on the left, also phases C’-B’-A’ on the right. The next section may be B-C-A on the left, also A’-C’-B’ on the right. Therefore, the rotation on each side of the tower will be opposite.

But would a set of transposition towers be big enough to spot on Google Maps?

And away I go

My initial theory was that the photo couldn’t be taken *that* far from Melbourne or off a main road – normal people don’t go driving for hours down bush tracks just to photograph power lines – so I made a virtual visit to the Moorabool Terminal Station outside Geelong.

Google Maps

My first location of note on Google Maps – a hub of activity outside Cressy, where the transmission lines were being repaired.

Google Maps

Six pylons came tumbling down to earth in January 2020 following extreme winds.

ABC News photo

The outage shut down the Portland aluminium smelter, until temporary repairs were completed to allow power to be restored.

The Standard photo

Then off across empty plains until Lismore – where I found two parallel single circuit pylons.

Google Maps

But this wasn’t the transposition towers I was looking for, but somewhere I’ve been meaning to visit in person – the spot where the 500 kV line crosses over the single circuit Ballarat to Terang 220 kV line.

Google Street View

As I continued west, the paddocks started to turn green, and I found another place I’m yet to visit – Mortlake Terminal Station.

Google Maps

And the fossil gas fired Mortlake Power Station that relies on it.

Origin Energy photo

And finally something that matched what I was looking for – a pair of single circuit transposition towers in the middle of a twin circuit transmission line, outside the locality of Willatook.

Google Maps

Following Google Street View along Malseeds Road found the transposition towers.

Google Street View

But given the transmission line turns to the right before reaching the transposition towers, I needed to head west – Willatook-Warrong Road was the next road to take.

Google Street View

Now to see if it was the same set of pylons.

Nicole Cleary photo via The Age

And boom .

Google Street View

A match!

And one last detail

The little sign in the background of the original photo looked like a ‘Danger: Gas Pipeline’ sign, but the only gas network diagrams I could find lacked sufficient detail to confirm.

AEMO gas pipeline network map

And over at Open Infrastructure Map the only feature at the location was the 500 kV transmission line I’d been following since Moorabool.

Open Infrastructure Map

So an adventure for another day.

Further reading

Some more detail on the 2020 transmission line pylon collapse at Cressy.

• AEMO Preliminary Report – Victoria and South Australia Separation Event – April 2020
• AusNet Services cost pass through application – July 2020
• Energy Safe Victoria incident report – November 2020

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So what is Tram Detective?

Tram Detective is a tool I built that collects data from the TramTracker API every 10 minutes for every tram in Melbourne.

It then slices and dices the data to give insights into how the fleet is deployed, when new trams enter service, old trams are retired, and give gunzels a ‘heads up’ for unusual tram movements.

So lets go digging

The Victorian Government coronavirus website has a list of exposure sites, with route 82 tram from Footscray to Edgewater on 10/07/2021 between 7:51pm – 8:14pm one of them.

Finding out which trams were running on route 82 on July 10 was easy – Tram Detective has a page that does just that already.

A total of 12 trams ran a route 82 service that day – Z3.118, 124, 125, 130, 147, 154, 165, 179, 181, 186, 212, 218 and 228.

Tram Detective also lets you drill down to specific trams and see what route they were running on a given day, as well as at a specific time – but it doesn’t give you a way to see their exact location.

For that I had to run a query on the backend database that powers the site.

SELECT tramid, sighting, destination, direction FROM trams_history WHERE routeNo = 82 AND sighting > '2021-07-10 19:40' AND sighting < '2021-07-10 20:30' ORDER BY tramid, id;

And after waiting for my poor database server to filter through years worth of data, it gave me an answer.

During the exposure period there were six trams running on route 82 - Z3.124, 125, 165, 181, 218 and 228. Taking a closer look at the data, one can determine in which direction they are headed.

• Z3.124 was headed for Footscray during the entire exposure period.
• Z3.218 and Z3.228 were headed for Moonee Ponds during the entire exposure period.
• Z3.165 was headed for Footscray, arriving at the terminus sometime between 7:54pm and 8:04pm.
• Z3.125 was headed for Footscray, arriving at the terminus sometime between 8:12pm and 8:22pm.

Which leaves tram Z3.181 - it was was headed for Footscray at 7:40pm then headed back towards Moonee Ponds at 7:50pm - right in the middle of the exposure period.

July 20 - a correction

My original post flagged Z3.186 as the affected tram, based on the following data:

Turns out I messed up the database query that I was running!

My server saves datetime data in the server timezone, and application code converting the value back to Melbourne time when you view the page. By leaving this timezone conversion out of my SQL queries, I was looking at the wrong slice of time, and came to an incorrect conclusion.

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Spencer Street Station Redevelopment newsletter Interchange Issue 5: May 2002

In the beginning

Spencer Street Station opened in 1859 as dead end terminus, five years after Flinders Street Station. The platform ran parallel to Spencer Street – not on an angle like today – and had a single main platform, with a dock platform at the north end. In the years that followed, the number of platforms expanded, but access was always via the southern end.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1109

In 1888 work started on a double-track viaduct linking Spencer Street Station to Flinders Street Station, with the line opening in 1891 to goods traffic, and in 1894 to passenger trains. In conjunction with this project a through platform was provided on the western edge of the station complex.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1 item H 1501

Passengers accessing the island platform via a footbridge to the south end.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1497

Leading them to the suburban concourse at the south end of the existing station.

VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1498

Enter the first subway

In conjunction with the electrification of the Melbourne suburban rail network, the viaduct to Flinders Street was expanded to four tracks in 1915, and between 1918 and 1924 four additional platforms were built at Spencer Street Station – today’s platforms 11 though 14.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1507

The new platforms were west of the existing station.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1505

With access provided by a tiled pedestrian subway.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P3, item ADV 0620

Linked to each island platform by ramps, not stairs.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 1508

Note the resemblance to the pedestrian subways at Flinders Street Station – constructed during the same period.

But this subway did not stretch the entire length of the station – the sub ended country platforms were still accessed via the concourse at the southern end.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P3 item ADV 1580

Leaving a ramshackle mess of station facilities for intending passengers.

Diagram from ‘Railway Transportation’ magazine

The 1960s redevelopment

Having grown organically over the years, there had been many proposals to rebuild Spencer Street Station into something befitting it’s status as the main country railway station for Melbourne. However it took the Melbourne-Albury standard gauge railway project to finally see the go ahead given for a new station, with work starting in 1960.

Victorian Railways annual report 1961-62

The new station building on Spencer Street was the most visible part of the project, but the major change for passengers was the construction of a new subways beneath the existing platforms.

Weston Langford photo

The work included:

• suburban subway with north and south facing ramps on Spencer Street, running west beneath the existing station to the existing subway that served platforms 9 through 14;
• a parallel country subway linking the basement of the new station building to platforms 1 through 8;
• parcels subway at the north end of the station, providing a segregated route for parcel and baggage trolleys between the parcels office and country platforms 1 through 8.

PROV VPRS 12903/P1, Box 683/01

Work on the new station was completed in 1965.

Photo by Graeme Butler, part of the 1985 Melbourne Central Activities District (CAD) Conservation Study

Extension into the CBD

An eastern extension to the suburban pedestrian subway beneath Spencer Street commenced in 1973, with the tunnel breakthrough made on 18 June 1974.

PROV image VPRS 12800/P1, item H 4221

Opened to pedestrians on 11 September 1975, the tunnel continued east of the station.

Where it split to serve three exits.

One towards Bourke Street, emerging from the Savoy Hotel on the northern corner of Spencer and Little Collins Street.

With escalator and stairs to street level.

A second exit with escalator and stairs led towards Collins Street, passing through the basement of MMBW House at the southern corner of Spencer and Little Collins Street.

And a third exit with just stairs led to Little Collins Street, emerging outside the Savoy Hotel.

A final extension

In conjunction with the Melbourne Docklands development, the station subway was extended 80 metres west under Wurundjeri Way, to give access to the brand new Docklands Stadium.

Building the subway before the road made construction easier.

The subway was constructed to extend the existing Spencer Street subway. It is a reinforced concrete structure 9 metres wide to match the width of the existing subway. It extends the existing subway a distance of 80 metres.

Most of the subway was constructed using cut-and-cover construction and in-situ concrete as it was in the clear. For the section under the tracks, the reinforced concrete tunnel section was first cast alongside the tracks, and during an occupation, the material under the track was excavated and the tunnel jacked into position. A length of the cut-and-cover tunnel was first cast to provide the anchor block for the jacking operation.

With the extended subway ending at a roller door.

The beginning of the end

The primacy of the subway for access to Spencer Street Station ended in 2000, when the Bourke Street Bridge was completed as part of the Docklands Trunk Infrastructure project.

Ian Harrison Photo, SLV H2000.184/20

The new 20 metre wide, 205 metre long pedestrian bridge stretched across the station platforms, forming an extension of Bourke Street towards the new Docklands Stadium.

Weston Langford photo

And also included escalator, stair and lift access to platforms 3/4, 9/10, 11/12 and 13/14 at Spencer Street Station.

Diagram from ‘Bridges for Melbourne Docklands Infrastructure’

The Spencer Street Station Authority was also created, to manage the redevelopment of the station.

The Spencer Street Station Authority commenced operations on 1 July 2001, having been created by legislation and supported by all sides of Parliament.

In its first 17 months, the Authority has concentrated on improvements to public safety and amenity, for the 60,000 – 70,000 people who pass through the station each day. Matters such as emergency evacuation procedures, fire services, security, cleaning and public health have been dealt with, as well as a considerable upgrade to retail facilities, seating, signage, etc.

The aging escalators between the subway and Spencer Street were one issue – so they took the cheap option of taking them out of service, and enclosing them in timber boxes.

But inside the station itself, the subway was patched up so it could handle the growing number of users.

Spencer Street Station Redevelopment newsletter Interchange
Issue 5
May 2002

Spencer Street Station’s subway – the key artery for the station’s users – has just received a much needed facelift. The subway at Spencer Street Station, which was first opened in 1963, is the main connection to all rail platforms and will remain an important access point throughout the construction of the new station.

The Spencer Street Station Authority completed the refurbishment in March 2002, as an interim improvement before the station redevelopment. It brings the facilities up to modern standards and helps create a safer environment.

An average of 55,000 people use the station each weekday, the majority of which use the subway. It services metropolitan, country and interstate rail commuters. These numbers swell dramatically for sporting events at Colonial Stadium and other major events such as the Grand Prix, the Spring Racing Carnival and the Royal Melbourne Show.

The layout is now improved to provide for added commuter ease and security and to allow for potential greater patronage as the Docklands project develops. The central retail outlets have been relocated to the side of the subway to create greater capacity for passenger movement, and have been upgraded, giving them a new welcoming look.

New ceilings and additional lighting have been installed to create a more inviting atmosphere. Taking four months to complete, the subway works mainly took place out of peak hours to ensure a safe working environment for builders and minimal disruption to the travelling public.

The Spencer Street Station Authority still saw a need for the subway while the new station took shape around it, as well as once it was completed.

It is anticipated that construction work will begin in mid 2002 on the Spencer Street Redevelopment Project with construction proposed to be finished by mid 2005. During this period the existing pedestrian subway will be a vital, probably the only, means by which the travelling public will be able to safely gain access to and from the train platforms.

After the new station has been built, the subway will continue to have an important role for luggage transfer and other operational matters, and as a vital emergency evacuation route.

The Authority therefore made a decision to upgrade the subway, to achieve three things:

(a) to eliminate health problems by removal of asbestos and termite infestation;
(b) to open up the passageways by removing three shops from the centre aisle; and
(c) to provide better retail facilities for the public, bearing in mind that those on the two upper levels may have to be closed at certain stages during the redevelopment.

The original scope of works was expanded to meet these objectives, prior to being competitively tendered. The lowest tender of $737,938.85 (including GST) was accepted from Allmore Constructions, who had previously carried out the refurbishment of the main concourse. The Authority has since approved variations to this contract of approximately $50,000 to deal with more extensive termite damage in the subway than originally anticipated.

The improvements currently being carried out are fully funded by the Authority using revenue it generates from its retail activities and property leases, including public car parking and rentals paid by the train and bus operations.

And the end

Demolition of the old station began in 2003.

Spencer Street Station Authority photo

Temporary wiring being run through the subway.

And holes punched in the access ramps to allow the new roof to be built overhead.

As late as 2005 shops inside the subway were still open to serve passengers.

But as the project progressed, they were progressively closed.

In May 2005 the subway beneath Spencer Street was closed.

Spencer Street Station Authority media release
Friday 20 May, 2005

LOOK FOR THE CHANGES AT SPENCER STREET

Spencer Street Station is continuing its transformation into a world class station, with the Spencer Street Station Authority today announcing external access to station platforms through its 80 year old subway will close from Saturday 28 May 2005.

The Authority’s Chief Executive, Tony Canavan, said that the subway closure would coincide with the partial opening of a new passenger facility on Collins Street with limited access to metropolitan platforms.

“Change is in the air at Spencer Street, with the spectacular roof taking shape and now the closure of subway access to the station to allow construction works to continue. “Many metropolitan passengers will have a small taste of the new look station with the partial opening of the Collins Street Concourse, which will eventually provide access to all metropolitan train services at the station.”

Mr Canavan urged Spencer Street Station users to be aware of the best entrance points to the station following the subway closure on 28 May 2005. The clear message for metropolitan rail users is that the Bourke Street Bridge is now the best entrance point while construction continues at the station.

Mr Canavan said the closure of subway access to the station means that station users will use pedestrian crossings at Collins Street and Bourke Streets to cross Spencer Street. “We are working closely with VicRoads and will monitor crossing times carefully once these changes take place to ensure a safe and smooth flow of people,” said Mr Canavan.

Mr Canavan thanked station users for their patience and understanding during the construction and in light of ongoing changes at the station in the months to come. “This really is a case of some inconvenience in the short term, in order to deliver improved services and facilities for the future,” he said. “The closure of external subway access to the station is essential to the redevelopment, and will eventually see the dark and ageing subway replaced with wide open entrances to improve safety and access.”

In the months that followed, access to country platforms 1 through 8 was changed to be via the new ground level concourse at the Collins Street end.

And access to suburban platforms 9 through 14 changed to the new elevated Collins Street concourse.

However the subway remained open for passenger interchange for a few more months.

The western end closed to the public.

As well as the section towards the country platforms.

My last visit was on 24 July 2005, with public access ending very soon after.

Today the subway remains in place, but for the use of staff only.

Footnote – where did the subway go?

The July 2001 ‘Spencer Street Station Redevelopment Planning Study’ details the extent of the subway network.

There are two main subway systems accessing station platforms.

The passenger access subway extends some 300m from entrances to the city side of Spencer Street to a single entrance at Wurundjeri way. The subway width varies from about 9m to 14m, and the floor is some 4m below the general track level of RL 8.0. It grades gradually from east to west. Ramps (at slope 1:12) provide passenger access to all platforms. Several 9.0m deep alcoves on the southern side of the subway, below the regional platforms, house various businesses and services. The access from Wurundjeri Way (Docklands) is currently used only for events at the Stadium.

A baggage handling tunnel runs the full length of platform 1, below the platform, and links the basement in the main building to an access ramp on the southern concourse and a cross track tunnel to the north. There are also access ramps to regional platforms. Levels are similar to the main pedestrian subway. An additional baggage tunnel branches off the main subway at Platform 8 and links to access ramps to suburban island platforms.

How many shops were down there?

The planning study also listed the tenants of the subway, and the total area they occupied.

Subway Ticket sales area – 340 sq.m.

13 vending machines – 13 sq.m.

Commonwealth Bank Autobank – 2 sq.m.

Subway newsagency – 16 sq.m.

Subway snacks – 205 sq.m.

Mrs M Ireland’s Florist – 16 sq.m.

Tattersalls – 16 sq.m.

Subway clothing shop – 72 sq.m.

Toilets – 30 sq.m.

Other retail spaces – 180 sq.m.

Circulation, ramps etc. – 5,510 sq.m.

Total – 6,400 sq.m.

And how many people used it?

The same study also included the result of a pedestrian count completed on 24 November 2000, showing the routes used to access the station – noting that the subway east under Spencer Street was closed at weekends.

Entrance/exit	Pedestrians	Percentage
Spencer Street subway	18,920	40%
Bourke Street intersection	9,744	21%
Ramp to Spencer Street south	9,104	19%
Coach Station	8,201	17%
Ramp to Spencer Street north	1,567	3%
Bourke Street pedestrian bridge	82	0%
Total	47,618	100%

And noted the lack of capacity for future growth.

A recent survey of use indicates that the passenger access subway under Spencer Street facilitates about 19,000 movements on a Friday (40% of total station movements) with 7,000 occurring in the peak hour. Daily movements in the main subway within the Station were recorded at 34,000.

With projected levels of growth it is only a matter of time before the capacity of the current subways is inadequate. Optional responses to this situation would include:
· enlarging the existing subway;
· constructing an additional subway; and
· providing another form of platform access, such as an elevated concourse.

Fast forward to 2016, and now the rebuilt station is already at capacity – some great forward planning there!

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Finding the entrances

The first remnant of the Spencer Street Station subway is on Little Collins Street, outside the Savoy Hotel. Now boarded up, it once contained a stairwell down into the subway.

A roller door on the Spencer Street side of the Savoy Hotel was another entry point, secured by a roller door.

It remained in this state until May 2019, when the stairwell inside was covered over.

And the space converted into a shop.

Meanwhile on the other side of the street, the basement of the old Spencer Street Station building still exists, converted into staff offices.

But the connection under Spencer Street was bricked up.

And a second life

The subway might no longer continued under Spencer Street, but beneath the station it has been retained as a ‘back of house’ area.

The path it takes beneath the platforms still visible.

But the ramps from platform level have been fitted with doors to keep prying eyes out.

Storage cages filling the subterranean space, along with water, power, data, gas and fire systems.

And the western end turned over to a reclaimed water treatment facility.

And new users

Passengers might be gone from the old subway, but rail staff still use it everyday.

Luggage hall staff use the subway to deliver parcels and baggage to trains.

As do V/Line catering staff delivering food to buffet carriages.

V/Line fitters on their way to fix trains.

And Travellers Aid volunteers in their electric buggies.

Helping passengers unable to walk long distances around the station.

But the most famous users passed through on 27 August 2009.

Victorian Premier John Brumby, Public Transport Minister Lynne Kosky and Federal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Anthony Albanese.

Who used the subway to reach the future site of platform 15 and 16, where they turned the first sod for the Regional Rail Link project.

What about reopening it?

With Southern Cross Station at capacity in peak times and pedestrians spilling out onto Spencer Street, many people have called for the pedestrian subway to be reopened, including the City of Melbourne.

Pedestrian subway may re-open
CBD News
April 1, 2016

The City of Melbourne has pledged $750,000 to investigate the re-opening of a subway between Little Collins St and Southern Cross Station.

According to a council spokesperson, the tunnel formed part of the passenger subway through the former Spencer Street Station, before it was redeveloped as Southern Cross Station.

“Council has agreed to allocate funding in the current capital works budgets to investigate the feasibility of re-establishing a connection to an existing tunnel which runs under Spencer St and which could connect the station frontage to Little Collins St,” the spokesperson said.

According to the council spokesperson, the disused subway now supports a number of service and utility ducts for the station.

But these proposals came to nothing.

A council spokesperson said an investigation found that “significant” underground services had been installed in the tunnel along the west side of Spencer Street.

“These large pipes prevent access through the tunnel,” the spokesperson said.

With the only upgrades completed since being an extension of footpaths along Spencer Street.

Bonus content – a second subway to the north

At the northern end of country platforms 1 through 8 is another set of ramps, secured with automatic gates.

And ‘DANGER KEEP OUT’ signs at bottom.

This subway was once used for the transport of baggage to country trains, and is large enough for light trucks to pass through, such as the V/Line toilet pumping truck.

And also has road access to the wider world via the coach terminal.

Footnote – more photos

Over on Reddit someone posted some photos showing the current state of the station subway.

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Secret cross-town connections

Melbourne’s tram system is primary a radial one, with every route except for 78 and 82 running via the CBD. However, there are a handful of cross-town connections allowing trams to avoid the city.

On the northern edge of the Melbourne CBD there is a connection that doesn’t appear on the network map – 300 metres of track along Victoria Street between Swanston and Elizabeth Streets.

The link was opened in the 1920s to connect the isolated North Melbourne Electric Tramways & Lighting Company system to the rest of the system.

Today it permits the transfer of empty trams between depots for maintenance, the diversion of route 58 trams due to disruptions in the CBD, and for special trams on Anzac Day to access the Shine of Remembrance for the dawn service.

Another hidden connection is much further from the city – 580 metres of track along Miller Street in Preston. It links route 86 on High Street to route 11 along St Georges Road, via a bridge over the Mernda railway line.

The link was part of the original Fitzroy, Northcote & Preston Tramways Trust network, it was once used by passenger services but was made redundant following the conversion of cable tramways to electricity, permitting through running along High Street.

Today the connection allows trams to access Preston Workshops and East Preston depot without travelling all the way back into the city.

The appendixes of the tram network

Also not shown on the network map are a number of dead end stub tracks.

The north end of William Street at Dudley Street is one, where route 58 trams diverge into Peel Street.

Once upon a time passengers from the southern suburbs had two options to reach the city – trams via St Kilda Road and Swanston Street, or Kings Way and William Street. The latter services terminated at Dudley Street until they were withdrawn in 1986, with the sidings seeing little use since.

Spencer Street north of La Trobe Street has a single track stub.

Used as the route 75 terminus until it was relocated to Docklands, today the stub is used to turnback lunchtime extra for Bourke Street, and Grand Prix specials.

Route 12 also has a seldom used track stub – running along Mills Street towards Albert Park Beach.

It’s claim to fame – it has never been used by timetabled trams.

Sidings for special events

Trams carry passengers to many big events across Melbourne, so a number of sidings exist across the network to park extra trams ready for special event crowds to head home.

Footy fans headed home from the MCG are served by the dead end Simpson Street sidings at the end of Wellington Parade.

While tennis fans have served by the Melbourne Park tram siding on route 70 to the south.

Docklands Stadium is served by trams from the Footscray Road siding, located north of Dudley Street.

Trams to Flemington Racecourse and the Showgrounds use the Showgrounds Loop on Union Road in Ascot Vale.

The South Melbourne Football Club might have left Lakeside Oval, but South Melbourne Loop on route 12 is still there.

And raceday crowds at Caulfield Racecourse are also down, but the tram siding in the middle of Dandenong Road remains.

Tram termini and layovers

Trams can’t instantly change direction – the tram driver needs to lock up before walking down to the other cab. For this reason tram termini often have sidings to free up the ‘though’ tracks for passing trams.

Melbourne University has three dead end sidings facing south for terminating trams.

Route 12 in Richmond has a turnback outside the Victoria Gardens shopping centre.

Route 30 has a dead end siding just past the St Vincent’s Plaza tram stop.

And route 82 has a turnback siding at Moonee Ponds Junction.

The route 96 terminus at East Brunswick is a dead end, but has two sidings beyond the tram stop for trams to lay over.

As does Waterfront City in Docklands.

And finally, St Kilda Road at the Arts Centre has a short section of third track, allowing defective trams to be parked clear of other services.

Tram depots

Melbourne’s fleet of trams is housed at eight depots around the city. Each depot has an array of tracks leading into the sheds and storage roads.

Brunswick Depot has a non-passenger carrying section of track connecting it to the rest of the network.

As does Camberwell Depot.

Reconnecting dead ends

The tram network map suggests that when tram routes intersect, you need to get out and change trams to turn the corner. But if you take a look on the ground, you might see a set of connecting curves exist between the two intersecting tracks, allowing trams to weave their way across the network as they please.

Route 109 passes the northern end of route 78, 16 and 72 as it heads east to Box Hill, they aren’t necessarily a dead end for trams – curves link connects Church Street to Victoria Street.

And Cotham Road to Glenferrie Road.

The route 12 terminus in St Kilda has a connection to route 96 along Fitzroy Street.

The route 58 terminus on Toorak Road has a connection to route 16 along Glenferrie Road.

And route 78 at Balaclava has a connection to route 67 along Nepean Highway.

Connecting curves

Where tram routes cross over is another places where trams can weave their way across the network as they please – thanks to curves that allow trams to change from one street to the other.

The curves at Swanston Street and La Trobe Street, along with those at William Street and La Trobe Street, are a frequently used diversion route through the CBD for routes that normally use Swanston Street.

Curves at Nicholson Street and Victoria Street provide Bourke Street routes an alternate path through the CBD.

And those at Kings Way and Sturt Street provide a detour around St Kilda Road.

But other connections are seldom used, like those at Clarendon and Park Street in South Melbourne.

And Church and Swan Streets in Richmond.

And the granddaddy of them all – the ‘grand union’ at Balaclava Junction that allows trams from any direction to take any other directions.

Route 3, 16, and 64 trams use the junction, but only the north / west leg of the junction is used by passenger services.

A stub that is gone

The Essendon Football Ground at ‘Windy Hill’ was once served by trams, thanks to a stub along Napier Street leading north from the route 59 tracks. Essendon’s relocation to the MCG saw the siding made redundant, but the siding was not removed until 2004.

A removed connection

Once upon a time there was a 1.5 kilometre long cross-town tramway along Holden Street in North Fitzroy, until it was dismantled in the 1970s.

Weston Langford photo

Constructed to link the isolated Fitzroy, Northcote & Preston Tramways Trust system to the rest of the electric network while avoiding the existing cable tramway network, this connection commenced on routes 1/6 at Lygon Street, crossing over route 96 at Nicholson Street, and headed east towards St George’s Road, where it snaked via Pilkington Street and Barkly Street to reach what is now route 11.

Conversion of the cable trams to electric rendered the connection redundant, but a shuttle service running along Holden Street continued until the 1950s.

A cross-town connection we almost got

In 2007 as part of the planning for the ‘New’ Preston Depot on St Georges Road, another cross-town tramway connection was proposed.

The connection being described as.

Track Links is new track to give connection from the Preston Depot (workshops site) to routes 96 (Nicholson Street) and routes 1/8 (Lygon Street). There are four options.

• Option A – Link down Arthurton and Blyth Streets from St. Georges Road to Lygon Street.
• Option B is a combination of A and C, ie Arthurton/Blyth Streets from St.Georges Road to Nicholson Street, and Brunswick Road from Nicholson Street to Lygon Street.
• Option C – Holden Street and Brunswick Road from St.Georges Road to Lygon Street.
• Option D – Park Street (next to old Inner Circle train line) from St.Georges Road to Lygon Street.

However it was not to be – ‘New’ Preston Depot opened in April 2016, replacing East Preston, but only housing E class trams for route 11, 86 and 96.

And a connection that isn’t there

For some reason the route 72 terminus in Burke Road isn’t connected to the route 109 tracks along Whitehorse Road.

The nearest connection to the rest of the network is 7.5 kilometres away – at Glenferrie Road and High Street in Malvern!

So what can you do with all these connections?

Back in the 1920s the ‘Shilling Tour’ tram took advantage of the little used curves, taking tourists around the eastern and south-eastern suburbs of Melbourne.

While in the 1990s another ‘mystery’ tour of Melbourne was launched – the route 99 “NightLink” tram running from Fitzroy to St Kilda, Chapel Street, and Richmond.

And finally, tram enthusiasts have organised their own private tours of the network, traversing the hidden cross-town connections, and stopping for photos at little used sidings.

Back in 2012 I went on a tour of the western suburbs to commemorate the closure of the Footscray tramways, in 2016 a farewell tour for B1 class trams, and a 2017 tour that tried to visit as many places called ‘park’ as possible.

Sources

• A timeline history of the Melbourne electric tramways by Don Storey
• Melbourne CBD diagram by Mal Rowe showing tram tracks, curves, crossovers and sidings.
• 1979 track diagram for the Melbourne tram network.
• Destination Waterfront City: A Guide to Melbourne’s Trams by Dale Budd and Randall Wilson has a full track map of the Melbourne tram network, including cross-town connections, sidings, curves and crossovers.

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