South Kensington railway station

For the London Underground station, see South Kensington tube station.

South Kensington
Eastbound view from Platform 2, May 2023
General information
LocationChilders Street,
Kensington, Victoria 3031
City of Melbourne
Australia
Coordinates37°47′59″S 144°55′33″E / 37.7997°S 144.9258°E / -37.7997; 144.9258
SystemPTV commuter rail station
Owned byVicTrack
Operated byMetro Trains
Lines
Distance3.49 kilometres from
Southern Cross
Platforms2 side
Tracks6
Construction
Structure typeGround
ParkingYes
AccessibleYes—step free access
Other information
StatusOperational, unstaffed
Station codeSKN
Fare zoneMyki Zone 1
WebsitePublic Transport Victoria
History
Opened11 March 1891 (1891-03-11)
Rebuilt1975
ElectrifiedAugust 1920 (1500 V DC overhead)
Passengers
2005–200689,182[1]
2006–2007120,945[1]  35.61%
2007–2008142,531[1]  17.84%
2008–2009207,901[2]  45.86%
2009–2010249,613[2]  20.06%
2010–2011281,410[2]  12.73%
2011–2012284,298[2]  1.02%
2012–2013Not measured[2]
2013–2014338,162[2]  18.94%
2014–2015342,741[1]  1.35%
2015–2016394,707[2]  15.16%
2016–2017398,191[2]  0.88%
2017–2018406,011[2]  1.96%
2018–2019412,850[2]  1.68%
2019–2020304,750[2]  26.18%
2020–2021127,950[2]  58.01%
2021–2022159,950[3]  25.01%
Services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station
North Melbourne
towards Frankston via Flinders Street
 Werribee line Footscray
towards Werribee or Williamstown
Williamstown line
     Sunbury line does not stop here
Former services
Preceding station Metro Trains Following station
North Melbourne
towards Flinders Street
 Sunbury line
Ceased 2013
 Footscray
towards Watergardens or Sunbury
Track layout
to North Melbourne
to Arden
1
2
to
North Dynon
Rail Yard
Maribyrnong River
to Footscray
electrified
non-electrified
Location

South Kensington station is a railway station operated by Metro Trains Melbourne on the Werribee and Williamstown lines, part of the Melbourne rail network. It serves the inner north-western suburb of Kensington in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. South Kensington is a ground-level unstaffed station, featuring two side platforms. It opened on 11 March 1891, with the current station provided in 1975.[4][5]

Freight lines run to the south of the station. The closest of those lines are used by V/Line to reverse empty services from Traralgon and Bairnsdale, while the tracks further south are used by a variety of standard gauge freight operators. The lines to the east join Melbourne Yard, while those to the west are the South Kensington–West Footscray set of lines that lead to either South Dynon or West Footscray, via the Bunbury Street tunnel.

All the private sidings that formerly existed around South Kensington have now been closed. They included a siding to a large wool store to the north-east (now demolished), one to a warehouse and silos to the east (open but no longer served by rail), and two sidings to the north serving the Melbourne City Council abattoirs and Kenstore, a military warehouse complex that opened during World War II.

The current configuration of the station dates from 2014, as part of the Regional Rail Link (RRL) project. The goods-only tracks immediately to the south of the station were replaced by a pair of tracks used by regional passenger services operating to and from Southern Cross. The signal box, formerly located at the up end of the down platform (Platform 2), was demolished to make way for the new RRL tracks. A mural outside the station on Childers Street was funded by the City–Maribyrnong River arm of the project, but it has since been painted over.

History

In 1972, the platforms were extended at the down end of the station.[6] In 1975, the present platform shelters were provided, when the station was modified to accommodate the quadruplication of the line to Footscray.[7] The disused station office, located near the entrance to the pedestrian underpass on Childers Street, was also provided around that time.[7] On 1 July of that year, parcel facilities at the station were abolished.[8] The following year, in November 1976, the quadruplicated line between South Kensington and Footscray was provided.[4]

In 2020, in a survey conducted by the RACV, South Kensington was ranked as the worst railway station in Victoria.[9]

Platforms and services

South Kensington has two side platforms. It is served by Werribee and Williamstown trains.[10][11]

Current (until 1 February 2026)

South Kensington platform arrangement
Platform Line Destination Via Notes Service Type Source
1  Werribee line 
 Williamstown line  		Flinders Street, Moorabbin, Cheltenham, Frankston Flinders Street All stations and limited express services
2  Werribee line  Werribee Altona Due to level crossing removal works, all citybound services on the Werribee line will bypass the Altona Loop stations. All stations [12][13]
 Williamstown line  Williamstown All stations

From 1 February 2026 to Mid-2026

South Kensington platform arrangement
Platform Line Destination Via Notes Service Type Source
1  Werribee line 
 Williamstown line  		Flinders Street All stations
2  Werribee line  Werribee Altona Due to level crossing removal works, all citybound services on the Werribee line will bypass the Altona Loop stations. All Stations [12][13][14]
 Williamstown line  Williamstown All stations

From Mid-2026

South Kensington platform arrangement
Platform Line Destination Via Service Type
1  Werribee line 
 Williamstown line  		Sandringham Flinders Street All stations and limited express services
2  Werribee line 
 Williamstown line  		Williamstown, Laverton, Werribee All stations and limited express services
  • Eastbound view from Platform 2 looking at now demolished signal box building, July 2005

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South Kensington railway station, Melbourne.
  1. ^ a b c d Estimated Annual Patronage by Network Segment Financial Year 2005-2006 to 2018-19 Department of Transport
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Railway station and tram stop patronage in Victoria for 2008-2021 Philip Mallis
  3. ^ Annual metropolitan train station patronage (station entries) Data Vic
  4. ^ a b "South Kensington". vicsig.net. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  5. ^ "South Kensington Station". Rail Geelong. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  6. ^ "Way and Works". Divisional Diary. Australian Railway Historical Society. April 1972. p. 6.
  7. ^ a b "Works & Safeworking". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. November 1975. p. 260.
  8. ^ "Traffic". Newsrail. Australian Railway Historical Society. October 1975. p. 226.
  9. ^ Jacks, Timna (10 March 2020). "No car parking, narrow platforms: Melbourne's worst train stations". The Age. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  10. ^ "Werribee Line". Public Transport Victoria.
  11. ^ "Williamstown Line". Public Transport Victoria.
  12. ^ a b "Werribee Line: Temporary timetable and service changes from Monday 17 November 2025 to late April 2026". transport.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
  13. ^ a b Build, Victoria’s Big (15 October 2025). "Inner-west level crossing removal works ramp up". Victoria’s Big Build. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
  14. ^ Build, Victoria’s Big (13 October 2025). "Using the Metro Tunnel". Victoria’s Big Build. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
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