The Stony Point line is a commuter railway line in the outer metropolitan area of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The line is also used for freight services to the Port of Hastings.
The line was opened in three sections during 1888 and 1889. Only two stations have been added since its completion—Leawarra and Morradoo. In recent years, there have been proposals to extend the electrified Frankston line to Baxter.
History
19th century
thumbnail|Stony Point station in 1892|left
The Stony Point line was initially opened from Frankston to Baxter station, with services commencing in 1888. Extensions to Hastings, Bittern, and Stony Point were completed in the following year. Branch lines were opened from Baxter to Mornington in 1889, and from Bittern to Red Hill in 1921. and Morradoo (originally called Railmotor Stopping Place No. 15) was opened a year later.
The Red Hill branch was closed in 1953, and the Mornington branch was closed in 1981. A -long branch from Long Island Junction to Long Island was opened on 29 April 1969 to serve the adjacent steel mill.
Passenger services on the line were withdrawn on 10 June 1981, and the line from Long Island Junction to Stony Point was closed on 22 June 1981. Services were recommenced on 27 September 1984. After the reopening, DRC railcars were used, with two MTH carriages in between them, making up a four-carriage train. Frequent breakdowns of the railcars led to diesel locomotives often being called in to haul the consist as an alternative. On one occasion, an X class diesel, in V/Line Freight livery was employed, hauling three MTH carriages. Those configurations were not used after V/Line was separated into passenger and freight divisions.
21st century
thumb|A V/Line A-class locomotive on a Stony Point train at Frankston station, 2008
Few changes occurred in the 2000s as the service settled down, following the period of frequent changes to the operators, services, and rolling-stock. Sometimes, when train operator V/Line had a locomotive shortage, locomotives leased from Freight Australia and, later, Pacific National appeared, in their green and yellow livery. In 2008, the Stony Point line underwent major re-signalling work, including the introduction of three-position signalling. The new signalling system was controlled remotely from the Frankston Signal Box.
In April 2008, Sprinter units began providing the passenger service. Two units usually operated the service, with a single unit returning to Southern Cross for servicing on a regular basis, and another sent in the opposite direction to replace it.
Malfunctions of boom gates forced the closure of the line for three months in 2015.
Future
Baxter extension
alt=The tired single platform of Baxter station in a rural environment|thumb|[[Baxter railway station|Baxter station, 2008]]
thumb|Leawarra station in 2025
In 2013, as part of Public Transport Victoria's Network Development Plan for metropolitan rail, an extension of the Frankston line to Baxter was earmarked to begin in the "long-term" (over the next 20 years). During the 2018 state election, the Liberal Party announced a project to extend electrified services to Baxter. The project would have included the removal of all crossings between Frankston and Baxter, duplication and electrification works, the construction of one (or two) new stations, and the reconstruction of stations along the corridor. The Federal Liberals announced $450 million of joint funding for the project promised between the state and federal governments, with the national government promising to provide $225 million of the funding.
Again in the lead up to the 2022 state election, the Liberal opposition supported the electrification to Baxter. The second Andrews government made no commitments to the Baxter rail extension, instead continuing construction on level crossing removal works along the Frankston line.
Network and operations
thumb|Myki reader at Stony point station
Services
The line operates for approximately 13 hours a day, from about 5:30 am to around 10:30 pm from Monday to Friday, and 7:00 am to 8:30 pm on Saturdays and Sundays. Train frequency is typically every 90 to 120 minutes throughout the day due to the line being single track with no passing loops. Unlike the rest of Melbourne's rail network, services do not run 24 hours a day on Friday nights and weekends.
Freight movements typically occur twice daily, with Qube Holdings operating trains to the Long Island steel mill and the Port of Hastings. Trains to Melbourne run at approximately 4:00 am and during the mid-afternoon, while trains from Melbourne run at around midnight and noon.
Train services on the Stony Point line are also subjected to maintenance and renewal works, usually on selected Fridays and Saturdays. Shuttle bus services are provided throughout the duration of works for affected commuters.
Stopping patterns
Legend — Station status
- ◼ Premium Station – Station staffed from first to last train
- ◻ Host Station – Usually staffed during morning peak, however this can vary for different stations on the network.
Legend — Stopping patterns
- ● – All trains stop
- ◐ – Some services do not stop
- | – Trains pass and do not stop
{| class="wikitable defaultcenter col1left"
! colspan="3" style="background:#;" |<span style="color:white;">Stony Point Services</span>
|+
!Station
!Zone
!Stony Point
|-
|◼ || rowspan="10" | 2 || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|-
| || ●
|}
Operators
The Stony Point line has had a number of operators since its opening in 1889. The Victorian Railways, the State Transport Authority, the Public Transport Corporation and V/Line operated the line successively until the privatisation of the Melbourne rail network in 1998. On 1 July 1998, operation of the Stony Point line was transferred from V/Line. V/Line was privatised in 1999 but returned to government ownership in 2003. V/Line has operated the Stony Point service on behalf of three different Melbourne private rail operators in succession: M>Train, Connex, and Metro Trains.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Operators of the Stony Point line:
!Operator
!Commenced operations
!Ceased operations
!Length of operations
|-
|Victorian Railways
|1889
|1983
|94 years
|-
|State Transport Authority
|1983
|1989
|6 years
|-
|Public Transport Corporation
|1989
|1998
|9 years
|-
|V/Line for Bayside Trains (government operator)
|1998
|1999
|1 years
|-
|V/Line for M>Train
|1999
|2004
|5 years
|-
|V/Line for Connex Melbourne
|2004
|2009
|5 years
|-
|V/Line for Metro Trains Melbourne
|2009
|incumbent
| years (ongoing)
|}
Route
The Stony Point line is predominantly single track, with few curves and minimal earthworks for most of it length. The only duplicated sections are at each end of the line.
Apart from some suburban and light industrial development near Frankston, the line passes through open countryside with occasional small settlements.
Stations
The line serves 10 stations across of track. All stations are at ground level.
{| class="wikitable"
!Station
!Accessibility
!Opened
!Terrain
!Train connections
!Other connections
|-
|Frankston
| rowspan="10" |Yes—step free access
|1882
!Closed The trains are refuelled and serviced near Southern Cross station. All stations on the corridor are fully accessible—a first in Melbourne.
Signalling
In common with most of the Melbourne train network, the Stony Point line uses three position signalling, which became fully operational on the line in March 2008.
References
External links
- Stony Point line timetable
- Network map