Werribee line

The Werribee line is a commuter railway line in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Operated by Metro Trains Melbourne, it is the city's ninth longest metropolitan railway line at 32.9 kilometres (20.4 mi).

The line runs from Flinders Street station in central Melbourne to Werribee station in the south-west, serving 17 stations via Footscray, Newport and Laverton. Unusually amongst Melbourne's suburban lines, the Werribee line splits into two routes between Newport and Laverton: a single-track branch through Altona (known as the Altona loop or the Altona line), and a direct express route which bypasses Altona and has no intermediate stations. The line operates for approximately 19 hours a day (from approximately 5:00 am to around 12:00 am) with 24 hour service available on Friday and Saturday nights. During peak hour, headways of 10 minutes are operated with services every 20 minutes during off-peak hours. Trains on the Werribee line run with a two three-car formation of Comeng, Siemens Nexas, and X'Trapolis 100 trainsets.

Part of the line initially opened in 1857 by the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company. The line was progressively finished within the next two years, allowing trains to travel from Melbourne to Geelong. In April 1885, a short branch was opened off the Werribee line just past Newport to Williamstown Racecourse, and in November 1888, a branch was opened off the Racecourse branch to Altona, terminating at a station named Altona Beach. The construction of these lines played important parts in the development of Geelong and Melbourne's west during the 19th and 20th centuries, with the line continuing to be an important asset in the 21st century.

Since the 2010s, due to the heavily utilised infrastructure of the Werribee line, improvements and upgrades have been made. Works have included replacing sleepers, upgrading signalling technology, the removal of level crossings, planning for new infrastructure, the introduction of new rolling stock, and station accessibility upgrades.

With the effect of the Metro Tunnel's "Big Switch" timetable changes on 1 February 2026, Frankston Line trains returned to the City Loop, and the Werribee and Williamstown lines now terminate at Flinder's Street Station with no services continuing to Frankston. Starting later in 2026, the Werribee and Williamstown lines will connect with the Sandringham Line to form a new cross-city service.

History

19th century

In 1857, the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company (G&MRC) opened the Werribee to Little River section of the line they were building between Newport and Geelong, then in June of that year, they opened the section between Werribee and a temporary station near Newport, known as Greenwich. The intention was to connect to the Williamstown line being built by the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company, with whom they had arranged permission to run the former company's trains over the latter company's tracks to Melbourne, but the Williamstown line was not yet ready.

However, by October 1857, construction of the Williamstown line had sufficiently advanced to allow the Geelong trains to run to the terminus at Williamstown Pier, so Greenwich station was closed and a connection was made to the Williamstown line towards Williamstown. From Williamstown Pier, passengers could connect to a ferry across Hobsons Bay to Port Melbourne.

The Williamstown line fully opened in January 1859, so the connection near Newport towards Williamstown was removed and replaced with a connection to Newport, and the through running of Geelong trains to Melbourne commenced.

In April 1885, a short branch was opened off the Werribee line just past Newport to Williamstown Racecourse, and in November 1888, a branch was opened off the Racecourse branch to Altona, terminating at a station named Altona Beach. This branch was opened by the Altona and Laverton Bay Freehold and Investment Company to encourage people to buy their land in the area. However, the line closed less than two years later, in August 1890.

20th century

A portion of the Altona Beach line near Williamstown Racecourse was leased by the Victorian Railways (VR) in 1906 to store race trains. Sometime between 1911 and 1919, the line reopened for goods trains with a siding built from Altona Beach to the Melbourne and Altona Colliery Company mine. From November 1917, the VR worked on the line on behalf of the then owners, Altona Beach Estates Ltd., but to a relocated Altona Beach station, short of the original terminus.

The VR electrified the Williamstown line and the branch to Williamstown Racecourse in August 1920. In October 1924, the VR took total control of the Altona Beach line, and electrified it in October 1926. Automatic Block Signalling was commissioned between South Kensington and Yarraville in August 1927, and then on to Newport. The Automatic and Track Control system was installed from Newport South towards Geelong, enabling bidirectional use of the then single track line.

The Williamstown Racecourse branch closed in May 1950. Duplication of the Werribee line occurred in stages between 1960 and 1968, with the Altona branch converted to Automatic Block Signalling in October 1967. First announced by the Transport Minister Joe Rafferty in 1977, the line from Altona Junction to Werribee was electrified in September 1983.

By the early 1980s, the Altona line was under threat of closure, as recommended in the Lonie Report. In October 1981, the rail service was drastically cut, with all shuttle services withdrawn, and only two morning and evening trains being operated to and from Melbourne. However, a change of state government in 1982 saw the restitution of many services in July of that year. On 21 January 1985, the line was extended to Westona, which served as the terminus until April of that year when the line was extended to Laverton. When the Altona line was extended to Laverton, it was integrated into the Werribee line, becoming the Altona loop. At the same time as the extension to Laverton, the line from Altona to Westona, which had temporarily been operated by Staff and Ticket safeworking, was converted to Automatic and Track Control.

21st century

Initially, almost every Werribee bound service ran via Altona, but a timetable re-write in May 2011 saw this section converted to a separate service for the majority of the time. The rewrite introduced the controversial practice of having trains serving the Altona Loop run as a shuttle service between Laverton and Newport during off peak hours. Shuttle services were ended in August 2017, with weekday direct services to and from the city being reinstated to the Altona Loop.

In June 2015, the completion of the Regional Rail Link allowed for the rerouting of Geelong and Warrnambool services via the 90 km of new track constructed between Little River and Deer Park stations. Instead of stopping at select stations on the Werribee line, services now stop at new stations at Wyndham Vale and Tarneit which are in Melbourne's growing western suburbs. The separation of suburban and regional trains has reduced overcrowding, increased capacity, and improved service reliability on the Werribee line in addition to the benefits seen on Geelong services.

In January 2021, a major timetable rewrite resulted in increased frequencies and weekend daytime shuttle services being extended from Newport to Flinders Street. Peak hour weekday services now stop at South Kensington, which simplifies stopping patterns on the Sunbury line. In addition, peak hour frequencies were also made more consistent for the Altona Loop.

Until February 2026, services on the Werribee Line would run through with the Frankston line via Flinders Street. This service ceased on 1 February 2026 as part of the Big Switch which saw services from Werribee altered to run direct to Flinders Street only and not through to Frankston.

Future

Level crossing removals

The Level Crossing Removal Project has announced the removal of all remaining level crossings on the Werribee line, to be completed in stages from 2018 to 2030. In 2018, one level crossing was removed at Kororoit Creek Road, Williamstown North. The crossing was removed by raising the rail line onto a rail bridge above the road with partial duplication of the Altona Loop completed as part of the project. In 2019, another level crossing was removed at Aviation Road, Laverton. The crossing was removed by raising the road onto a bridge above the rail line with upgrades to Aircraft station in conjunction with the project. The upgrades included a redesigned station forecourt and construction of a new pedestrian underpass. In 2021, a total of 3 level crossings were removed at various locations along the line. Crossings were removed at Old Geelong Road in Hoppers Crossing and Werribee Street and Cherry Street in Werribee. Two of these crossings were removed with road bridges and one with a rail bridge. The removal of the crossing at Old Geelong Road in Hoppers Crossing also included an upgrade to Hoppers Crossing station with a new overpass, station forecourt, and bus interchange. The final five crossings along the line (excluding the ones on the Altona Loop) will be removed by 2030. The crossing at Hudsons Road, Spotswood and Maddox Road, Newport will be removed by constructing two separate rail bridges with a new Spotswood station also being built. In addition, the crossing at Maidstone Street will be removed with the construction of a road bridge and two crossings—Anderson Street and Champion Road—will be closed off. At the end of these works, the Werribee line will be fully level crossing free by 2030.

Melbourne Metro 2

The 2012 Network Development Plan identified the need for an east-west tunnel connecting the Werribee (and potentially) the Geelong line to the Mernda line. The project would split the Mernda line from the Hurstbridge line after Clifton Hill into a new tunnel, travelling east stopping at a new station in the "inner north", before connecting with at Parkville, Flagstaff, and Southern Cross stations. Exiting the CBD, the line would continue in a tunnel stopping at a new station in the suburb of Fishermans Bend, before crossing underneath the Yarra River and arriving at Newport station. The line would then exit the tunnel and travel further west to connect with the Werribee line bypassing the Altona Loop. The Werribee and Williamstown lines will be reconfigured to provide better and simpler service. This project was initially meant to be completed in the 2020s, however, no funding or planning has taken place, with the revised Victorian Rail Plan stating that the project would be completed under Stage 6 of the plan.

As part of the Melbourne Metro 2, the Werribee and Williamstown lines would be reconfigured to provide simpler service. The Sandringham line would continue running to Williamstown with the line also travelling to and terminating at Laverton via the Altona Loop. Express services (not via the Altona Loop) would instead be served by trains exiting the Melbourne Metro 2 tunnel towards Werribee (and potentially Geelong).

Geelong Fast Rail

The Western Rail Plan is a plan that aims to improve the quality of rail services in Melbourne's western suburbs through infrastructure upgrades on a range of metropolitan and regional lines. Geelong Fast Rail was one project identified in the Western Rail Plan as a matter of priority, as it would allow for Geelong and Warrnambool services to travel back via the Werribee line, cutting travel time and allowing electrification of other corridors to occur which are currently being served exclusively by V/Line trains. Phase 1 of Geelong Fast Rail will consist of the following projects aimed at cutting travel times by 15 minutes:

• New track between Werribee and Laverton dedicated to regional services
• Upgrades and widening of bridges over main roads, creeks, and rivers
• Upgraded stations at Werribee and Laverton
• Signalling and train control system upgrades

Construction on the project expected to get underway in 2023, with the Australian and Victorian governments committing $2 billion each to the project which is expected to create 2800 new jobs.

Network and operations

Services

Services on the Werribee line operates from approximately 5:00 am to around 12:00 am daily. In general, during peak hours, train frequency is 5–15 minutes (reduced frequencies on the Altona Loop) while services during non-peak hours drops to 20 minutes throughout the entire route. Instead of running through the City Loop, services terminate at Flinders Street, with boosted frequencies in combination with the Williamstown line. The Night Network operates on Friday nights and weekends, with services running 24 hours a day, with 60 minute frequencies available outside of normal operating hours.

Train services on the Werribee 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 Services do not operate via the City Loop

• ● – All trains stop
• ◐ – Some services do not stop - Weekend night network services do not stop at Southern Cross
• ▼ – Only outbound trains stop
• | – Trains pass and do not stop

Guide

Source:

Weekdays

- Express services to and from Newport stop at Southern Cross, North Melbourne, Footscray and Newport.

- Services stopping all stations to Newport also operate during this time.

Weekends

- All Services to and from Newport stop at all stations with extra services originating from Southern Cross (During special events only)

Night Network

- All Services to and from Newport stop at all stations except Southern Cross.

Temporary timetable from 11 April 2026 until 24 April 2026

S3, L3 and E2 are Rail replacement bus services

E2 replacement bus only operates during weekday peaks.

*On weekends before 11am and after 7pm and weekdays after 8pm, Newport stopping services will continue to Williamstown.

From 25 April 2026

Operators

The Werribee line has had a total of 10 operators since its opening in 1857. Early in 1857, the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company (G&MR) opened the Werribee to Little River section of the line they were building between Newport and Geelong. 2 years later in 1859, the government acquired the line and begun operations under the newly formed Victorian Railways (VR). The railway to Altona was constructed by the Altona Beach Estate Company, a private land developer, and opened on 9 November 1888 to a station named Altona Beach, which was about a kilometre to the east of the current station. As a result of the collapse of the 1880s Land Boom, regular services to Altona Beach ceased after August 1890, and the Victorian Government declined the offer of the owners to gift it the line. In 1917, the owners of the estate entered into an agreement with the Victorian Railways (VR) to provide a regular passenger service, having guaranteed to cover any operating losses. The majority of operations throughout its history have been government run: from its government acquisition in 1859 until the 1999 privatisation of Melbourne's rail network, four different government operators have run the line. These operators, Victorian Railways, the Metropolitan Transit Authority, the Public Transport Corporation, and Bayside Trains have a combined operational length of 140 years.

Bayside Trains was privatised in August 1999 and later rebranded M>Train. In 2002, M>Train was placed into receivership and the state government regained ownership of the line, with KPMG appointed as receivers to operate M>Train on behalf of the state government. Two years later, rival train operator Connex Melbourne took over the M>Train operations including the Williamstown line. Metro Trains Melbourne, the current private operator, then took over the operations in 2009. The private operators have had a combined operational period of 30 years.

Route

The Werribee line forms a mostly straight route from the Melbourne central business district to its terminus in Werribee. The route is 32.9 kilometres (20.4 mi) long and is fully doubled tracked from Flinders Street to its terminus, excluding during the Altona Loop. After changing from Frankston services at Flinders Street, the Werribee line traverses mainly flat country with few curves and fairly minimal earthworks for most of the line. Few sections of the line has been elevated or lowered to remove level crossings. All remaining level crossings will be removed by 2030.

The line follows the same alignment as the Williamstown line with the two services splitting onto different routes at Newport. The Werribee line continues on its south-western alignment, whereas the Williamstown line takes a southern alignment towards its final destination. Most of the rail line goes through built-up suburbs and heavy industrial areas with small pockets on non-urbanised spaces.

Stations

The line serves 17 stations across 39.2 kilometres (24.4 mi) of track. The stations are a mix of elevated, lowered, and ground level designs. The majority of elevated and lowered stations being constructed as part of level crossing removals. From 2030, Spotswood station will be elevated as part of additional level crossing removal works.

Infrastructure

Rolling stock

The Werribee line uses three different types of electric multiple unit (EMU) trains that are operated in a split six-car configuration, with three doors per side on each carriage. The primary rolling stock featured on the line is the Comeng EMUs, built by Commonwealth Engineering between 1981 and 1988. These train sets are the oldest on the Melbourne rail network and subsequently will be replaced by the mid 2030s. Siemens Nexas EMUs are also widely featured on the line, originally built between 2002 and 2005 these train sets feature more modern technology than the Comeng trains. The final type of rolling stock featured on the line is the X'Trapolis 100 built by Alstom between 2002 and 2004, and 2009 and 2020. All of these rolling stock models are widely used on other lines across the metropolitan network and work as the backbone of the network.

Alongside the passenger trains, Werribee line tracks and equipment are maintained by a fleet of engineering trains. The four types of engineering trains are: the shunting train; designed for moving trains along non-electrified corridors and for transporting other maintenance locomotives, for track evaluation; designed for evaluating track and its condition, the overhead inspection train; designed for overhead wiring inspection, and the infrastructure evaluation carriage designed for general infrastructure evaluation. Most of these trains are repurposed locomotives previously used by V/Line, Metro Trains, and the Southern Shorthaul Railroad.

Planned rolling stock

Contrary to popular belief, the next generation of the X'Trapolis family of electric EMUs, the X'Trapolis 2.0, won't be introduced on the Werribee line. By the time the new trains entered service, the Werribee line will be through routed to the Sandringham line.

Accessibility

In compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act of 1992, all stations that are new-built or rebuilt are fully accessible and comply with these guidelines. The majority of stations on the corridor are fully accessible, however, there are some stations that haven't been upgraded to meet these guidelines. These stations do feature ramps, however, they have a gradient greater than 1 in 14. Stations that are fully accessible feature ramps that have a gradient less than 1 in 14, have at-grade paths, or feature lifts. These stations typically also feature tactile boarding indicators, independent boarding ramps, wheelchair accessible myki barriers, hearing loops, and widened paths.

Projects improving station accessibility have included the Level Crossing Removal Project, which involves station rebuilds and upgrades and other individual station upgrade projects. These works have made significant strides in improving network accessibility, with more than 76% of Werribee line stations classed as fully accessible. This number is expected to grow within the coming years with the completion of level crossing removal works on the corridor by 2029.

Signalling

The Werribee line uses three-position signalling which is widely used across the Melbourne train network. Three-position signalling was first introduced in 1927, with the final section of the line converted to the new type of signalling in 1946. Past Werribee, three-position signalling continues further past Geelong.

External links

• Media related to Werribee railway line at Wikimedia Commons