Upgrades to ‘the oldest station in Melbourne’ may be decades away due to SRL promise

Broadmeadows train station has been labelled the worst transit hub in Melbourne by local councillors, who say much-needed upgrades have been stalled by the promise of a future Suburban Rail Loop stop in 20 years.

The area is set to double its population and transform into a key hub for Melbourne’s northern suburbs in the coming years as one of the state government’s first 10 “activity centres” identified in 2023 for increased housing development.

But Hume council claims the station, which was ranked Melbourne’s 12th most dangerous train station last year, according to the Crime Statistics Agency, has been dubbed the oldest and least accessible major train station in the city, citing poor interchange facilities, platform ramps that do not comply with accessibility laws, and a dark, narrow underpass between platforms that passengers say feels unsafe.

A detailed plan finalised last year showed the area should accommodate at least 3000 new homes, with building developments of up to 12 storeys around the town centre and up to six storeys in the existing residential neighbourhood east of the station.

“When our train station presents the way that it does, it makes it really difficult to elevate Broadmeadows to the level that I believe it should be,” Hume City Council mayor Carly Moore said.

The promise of a future stop on the Suburban Rail Loop is delaying much-needed upgrades, according to Moore, who fears it may be decades before any improvements.

The station serves Metro trains on the Craigieburn line, as well as Albury, Seymour and Shepparton V/Line trains. A bus interchange outside the station also connects passengers to Melbourne Airport on the route 901 – one of the few public transport links to Tullamarine.

The station was last rebuilt in 1990 with a mixed-use commercial development adjacent to the tracks and sharing station utilities, which complicates the task of delivering improvements.

The Brumby government promised $80 million to redevelop the station in 2009, but that funding never eventuated after Labor lost power to the Coalition in 2010. The Andrews government spent $4 million on amenity improvements in 2016, and smaller upgrades in 2020, including new toilets, lighting and CCTV.

Moore said a significant investment was needed to bring it into line with other major transit hubs.

However, she and other councillors are concerned that major improvements will be delayed until the proposed northern leg of the SRL is built, following the completion of $34.5 billion SRL East between Cheltenham and Box Hill in 2035.

The SRL Authority has proposed that the second leg of the orbital rail line will have stations at Doncaster, Heidelberg, Bundoora, Reservoir, Fawkner, Broadmeadows and finally Melbourne Airport, with an opening date between 2043 and 2053.

Moore said she had “repeatedly” asked the SRL Authority to explain its plans for Broadmeadows but had gotten nowhere, leaving a question mark over where the new station will go and how to future-proof for it in the current activity centre plans.

“I think the plan is in 20 years, when we’re ready to do SRL, we’ll just do it then,” Moore said.

However, the activity centre plan makes no mention of the future SRL station or its impact on housing development in the area. Areas around SRL East stations have all been rezoned as SRL “precincts” with height limits of more than 18 storeys.

The 2021 SRL East business case said that the northern leg of the project would make Broadmeadows one of three transport “super hubs” alongside Clayton and Sunshine because of its V/Line connection and single stop to the airport.

It projected that Broadmeadows’ population would double to 33,000 people and that jobs in the precinct would grow from 9000 in 2018 to 26,000 by 2056.

NORTH Link, an advocacy group representing tertiary education, major businesses and councils in the northern suburbs, has also made a station upgrade one of its top priorities.

“Broadmeadows is an important town centre in Melbourne’s north and has great potential to generate investment and jobs for the region,” executive director Chris James said. “A redevelopment of Broadmeadows Station is an important piece of the puzzle.”

A spokesperson for the Allan government said planning for the SRL North stations was under way but would not say how it might integrate with the existing station or activity centre plan.

“We upgraded Broadmeadows station in 2020 – and we are currently investigating further amenity improvements,” they said.

Labor’s local state MP, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, said she recently visited the station with public transport minister Gabrielle Williams to discuss ways to improve safety and amenity.

Matthew-Ward said the Craigieburn line would get timetable improvements later this year, and an overhaul of the protective services officer system will mean patrols from 9am until the last train, rather than from 5pm.

“My advocacy for a Broadmeadows transit and jobs super hub continues and there are also opportunities for housing on the substantial sections of VicTrack land north of the station,” she said.

The mixed-use building adjacent to the station consists of 21 lots owned by property investment group Centreland, and one lot owned by a medical centre.

The building’s strata manager Greg Cook said Centreland installed additional CCTV cameras and upgraded common area lighting last year, and will repaint the entire building in the next 12 months.

Cook said Centreland was working with Hume council, Metro Trains, Victoria Police and the state government to further improve cleanliness, amenity and safety around the station.

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