A 3.2-kilometre stretch of new railway between Caulfield and Hughesdale has opened for passengers, signalling the removal of the final four level crossings on Melbourne’s busy Caulfield-Dandenong rail corridor.
Nine crossings have now been removed from the line, as part of the Andrews Government’s Level Crossing Removal Program.
The new section of elevated rail hosted its first passenger services on June 18.
“We said we’d do it, and now every crossing between Caulfield and Dandenong is a relic of the past,” public transport minister Jacinta Allan said from one of the newly-elevated platforms at Carnegie Station.
“With every level crossing gone on this corridor we can now get on with delivering more trains carrying more passengers on Melbourne’s busiest rail corridor.”
The focus of work now shifts to building the new parks, paths and open spaces promised by the state government to get the elevated railway plan – generally unpopular with locals – over the line.
Local member for Oakleigh Steve Dimopoulos said the project would better connect neighbourhoods and busy shopping strips long-divided by the rail line.
“This is a real game-changer for our community,” Dimopoulos said. “After 139 years the barrier that has separated suburbs and caused so much frustration is gone. Locals can go to work, drop their kids to school and move about the community without ever having to worry about boom gates again – and they can do it knowing that our roads are so much safer.”