New stations in Melbourne's Edithvale, Chelsea and Bonbeach unveiled
Residents who live and new residents looking to live or invest in Melbourne's sandbelt can look forward to a significant investment in new public transport infrastructure now that the Victorian state government has awarded a contract to carry out work on level crossing removals in the area. At the same time, residents and prospective residents-alike get to see what their new stations will look like.
An alliance consisting Lendlease, Acciona Coleman Rail, WSP and Metro Trains Melbourne was awarded a $744 million contract to remove the level crossings at Edithvale Road in Edithvale, Station Street in Bonbeach as well as Argyle Avenue, Chelsea Road and Swanpool Avenue in Chelsea.
This is the same alliance of contractors that worked on other Frankston line level crossing removals in Seaford, Carrum, Cheltenham and Mentone.
The Frankston railway line will be lowered in sections triggering the rebuild of Edithvale, Chelsea and Bonbeach stations.
The safe, accessible stations will reflect the coastal look and feel of the area and will maximise natural light to the platforms – delivering on feedback from the community on the design of the stations. The construction will use natural materials and colours to complement the local communities.
Each of the modern new stations has been designed to enhance connections around the area for commuters, pedestrians and cyclists with local activity hubs, important community facilities and the beach.
The connection with traditional owners of the land is recognised in the station designs, with woven canopies representing the area’s Indigenous textiles and craft.
Level Crossing Removal Authority
The State Government also announced another alliance comprising Fulton Hogan and Metro Trains Melbourne has been awarded a $166 million contract to remove the level crossing at Clyde Road, just west of Berwick Station on the same day.
The Frankston line between the Mordialloc Creek and Patterson River, while remaining relatively low-rise and coastal, isn't shy of medium and higher-density development.
Mordialloc has a small concentration of projects but Aspendale right through to Carrum also have a smattering of projects on the Urban database. Townhouses such as La Sal Chelsea and smaller 3-level developments such as 310 Station Street in Chelsea are common throughout the sandbelt.
With the awarding of the Chelsea, Edithvale and Bonbaeach as well as the Berwick contracts, the government says that it has now awarded 50 contracts in total. 30 individual level crossings have been removed since the program first started during the first term of the Andrews Government.
At the 2018 state election, the ALP expanded their list of 50 level crossings to be removed to 75 and media statements say the state government will have worked through its entire list of 75 metropolitan Melbourne level crossing removals by 2025.
Projects such as the Regional Rail Revival program on the Geelong line will also see non-metropolitan level crossings removed.