Royal Park railway station

Royal Park railway station is located on the Upfield railway line in Victoria, Australia. It serves the northern Melbourne suburb of Parkville, and opened on 9 September 1884.[1]

Royal Park
Southbound view from Platform 2
Location	Poplar Road, Parkville Australia
Coordinates	37°46′53″S 144°57′06″E
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	Metro
Line(s)	Upfield
Distance	5.46 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	2 side
Tracks	2
Connections	Bus Tram
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Status	Unstaffed station
Station code	RPK
Fare zone	Myki zone 1
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	9 September 1884
Electrified	Yes
Services
Preceding station   Metro Trains   Following station Flemington Bridge towards Flinders Street Upfield line Jewell towards Upfield

It is located in the park of the same name, and is the nearest station to the Melbourne Zoo. A disused signal box is located on Platform 1.

History

The original plan for the route of the line through Royal Park was to be east of the Zoological Gardens, but after local protests against the destruction of the park, a decision was made to build the line to the west for "reasons of economy". On opening, only temporary station buildings were provided, along with a signal box and gatekeepers cottage.[2]

On 8 May 1888, Royal Park became a junction station, with the opening of the Inner Circle line, to both Clifton Hill and Northcote. At the same time, a timber station building and station masters residence were erected. Between 1889 and 1912, there was a goods siding near the station, named Royal Park Cutting Siding.[2]

The current station building on the Platform 1 was opened in 1920, with a tile roof in the "Gisborne style", and in 1936, a new waiting shed and ticket office replaced earlier structures on Platform 2.[2] Boom barriers replaced interlocked gates at the Poplar Road level crossing in 1971, when automatic signaling reached the station from Jewell, with automatic signaling extended to Macaulay in 1972.[3] The Inner Circle line (by then a goods-only stub to Fitzroy) was closed in 1981, and the waiting shed on Platform 2 was destroyed by arson in 1989. The signal box on Platform 1 closed in 1994.[3]

Platforms & services

Royal Park has two side platforms. It is serviced by Metro Trains' Upfield line services.[4]

Platform 1:

• Upfield line: all stations services to Flinders Street

Platform 2:

• Upfield line: all stations services to Upfield

Transport links

Dysons operates one route via Royal Park station:

• 505: Moonee Ponds Junction to Melbourne University[5]

Yarra Trams operates one route via Royal Park station:

• 58: West Coburg to Toorak[6]

References

1. Royal Park Vicsig
2. Jon Saul and Wendy Moore (May 1990). Down the line to Upfield. Coburg Public Transport Group.
3. Andrew Waugh. "VR History by Andrew Waugh - Upfield Line" (PDF). VR History. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
4. "Upfield Line". Public Transport Victoria.
5. "505 Moonee Ponds - Melbourne University via Parkville Gardens". Public Transport Victoria.
6. "58 West Coburg - Toorak". Public Transport Victoria.

External links

• Media related to Royal Park railway station, Melbourne at Wikimedia Commons
• Melway map at street-directory.com.au

Preceding station		Disused railways		Following station
Junction		Inner Circle line		North Carlton
	List of closed railway stations in Melbourne