Trains & Buses at Laverton - Melbourne Transport

In this video we visit Laverton, a busy station on the Werribee Line in Melbourne's south western suburbs. Laverton is particularly busy on weekdays where it is used as an interchange point between stopping all stations services that use the Altona Loop, and limited express services to and from Werribee that use the main line (aka the express route).

In this video we visit the station on a weekday morning where we see all three platforms in use, including limited express services to and from Werribee on platforms 1 & 2, and terminating/originating Altona Loop services on platform 3. Here we see a good mixture of Comeng, Siemens, and X'trapolis trains. While waiting inbetween trains we also take a quick tour inside a Comeng and a X'trapolis train. As a bonus we also see Steamrail's A2 986, K140, and T364 with a transfer train heading up to Ballarat for the Kings Birthday Weekend Ballarat steam shuttles.

Afterwards we then head to the bus interchanges. We start at the main bus interchange on Railway Avenue which is served by routes 411, 412, 415, 496 & 498; all operated by CDC Melbourne's Wyndham depot. We see some Scania L94UB's, Volvo B7RLE's, and Volvo B5LH hybrid buses, but we do get lucky to see two particular buses of interest; #198 which is a 2002 Volvo B12BLE with a Volgren 'CR221L' body, and #18 which is a 2002 Volvo B10BLE with a Volgren 'C221L' body. Buses with the Volgren 'CR221L' body are the oldest CDC Melbourne buses still on route service so it's nice to see a number still out and about.

We then head to the bus interchange at Maher Road which is served by routes 400, 414 & 417. Here we get luckier still where we see one of Transit Systems' brand new BYD D9RA electric buses on route 400. The route is unique as its one of the few in Melbourne to be shared between two operators, with the route shared between CDC Melbourne and Transit Systems. On the other two routes we see some CDC Melbourne buses including Volvo B7RLE's and Volvo B5LH's.

Laverton station opened on the 1st July 1886. The current island platform (platforms 2 & 3) and station buildings were constructed in 1968 - 1969 when the line to Werribee was duplicated. In 1985 the station became the junction for the Altona Loop when the Altona Branch was extended to Laverton to become integrated into the Werribee Line. In 2009 - 2010 the station underwent a $92.6 million upgrade which included the construction of a new third platform, a new overhead footbridge, and a kilometer of new third track. The upgrade provided additional operational flexibility on the Werribee Line by allowing Altona Loop trains to terminate at Laverton.

However shortly after opening the upgrade was criticized for its poor disabled access after the lifts often broke down, leaving travelers stranded. Infact by 2011 it was reported that the lifts had broken down 100 times. The lifts were also criticized for being too small to fit an ambulance stretcher, which in one instance necessitated the need to temporarily stop trains on the line to enable paramedics to access the platform. It's largely because of Laverton station that since 2013 all new stations in Melbourne have been provided with an alternative means of disabled access onto the platform in lieu of a lift. This has generally been the provision of ramps, but in more recent years has also included the installation of a second lift serving the same platform/entrance. By 2016 - 2017 Metro had enough of the original lifts (and trust me they were among the worst lifts I've ever used; very rough traction and door mechanisms and they never leveled properly) that they completely overhauled them, and I'm happy to report that they are much more reliable now.

I'll also criticize Laverton for its poor bus interchange which I think is among the worst bus interchange at a train station in Melbourne. Like many Melbourne bus interchange its very basic with little amenity for commuters with low levels of seating, shelter, lighting and CCTV. However the main issue at Laverton is the interchange's poor location which is over 100 meters away from the station entrance; not ideal when the transfer times between modes of transport should be as minimized as possible. There's also no direct path between the station entrance and the bus interchange forcing commuters to walk through the car park which is inherently unsafe (trust me I've nearby been hit by reversing cars twice) but rather inconvenient, especially after its been raining and the whole car park fills up with water forcing you to wade over large puddles and get your feet wet.

Date:
June 2023.

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