Long journey times make the Alamein line unattractive as a way of commuting to the CBD or other nearby destinations such as Box Hill shopping centre. These are governed by three major factors:

• Low track speed limits - the most obvious one being the tram/rail crossing at Riversdale
• Closely spaced stations, preventing trains from reaching their maximum speed before having to slow down
• Poorly designed station facilities, with no capacity for interchange with buses and trams

Smart Passengers proposes a project to counter these factors, involving the grade separation of the Riversdale Road crossing and the relocation of stations in order to allow trains to maintain a high average speed, while maximizing coverage and providing convenient interchange from trains to trams and buses.

The project:

• Grade separate Riversdale Road and Prospect Hill Road crossings by elevating the rail line
• Relocate Riversdale station from the north side of the road to the south side, leaving East Camberwell to cater for walk-up passengers from the north
• Remove Willison station, as the distance between Riversdale and Willison will then be too short
• Relocate Burwood station to Toorak Road, for better interchange between trains and Route 75 trams; if the trial of escalators for interchange between trams and trains at Glenhuntly (see p14) is deemed successful, construct a similar facility at the new Burwood station
• Remove Hartwell station, as the distance between Hartwell and Burwood will then be too short
• Add a new bus route running parallel to the line, running at the same frequency as the train, with interchanges at Camberwell, Riversdale, Burwood and Ashburton (a full route map is available online). This will bring public transport within walking distance of a larger number of local households than are currently served by the trains.
• Reorganize the junction at Camberwell to make the track layout more versatile, and more capable of absorbing disruptions to normal running

Space limits prevented the inclusion of the following details in the book "Transport Plan - An Alternative Option".

Track diagrams and gradients

View proposed track diagrams for the Camberwell-East Camberwell-Riversdale section

View proposed track diagrams for the Riversdale-Alamein section

Download spreadsheet of altitudes and gradients for Alamein line as proposed (XLS file, 44kB - don't forget to virus scan all XLS files before opening them)

Make the following alterations at Ashburton:

• move siding no 4 about 50-60 metres in the up direction
• add a Low Speed light
• switch the A light from R/Y to R only
• switch the B light from R only to R/Y/G
• add a "Reduce to Medium Speed" aspect to LA435

These changes are required in order to provide track capacity needed for the increase in services outlined in the proposed 2020 timetable.

Camberwell-Burwood-Ashburton feeder bus

In order to ensure no household is further than 400m from a public transport service after the removal of Willison and Hartwell stations, a feeder bus should be run along the following route.

This brings even better coverage than is available today. Residents of some areas of Hartwell and Ashburton are currently required to walk long distances to their nearest point of public transport; this bus service will bring it within easy walking distance.

Southbound, the bus runs express along major roads to Riversdale, then stops every 400m or so along Glyndon Road to replace Willison and Hartwell (which brings everything from the railway line to Highfield Road into the 400m catchment area). Then it stops at the relocated Burwood station, which will be a timetable checkpoint (coordinated with the train timetable).

From Burwood it runs down Summerhill Rd to High St (serving all the households that were served by the old Burwood station except a few houses on Montana Pde) and then to Ashburton for another timetable checkpoint and guaranteed connection.

Northbound, the bus departs from Ashburton station and runs up Vears Road, Clonarg St, Bath Rd, Welfare Pde, Lithgow Pde and Toorak Rd to Burwood for another timetable checkpoint and train connection. That brings everything from the railway line to Warrigal Road into the catchment of either this bus or one of the services on the major roads (tram 75, buses 903 and 734).

Then it runs express (because the west side of the rail line is covered by the 70 and 75 trams) along Camberwell Rd, Trafalgar Rd, Stanhope Grove, Broadway and Cookson St.

Please also note that further changes are proposed for the Alamein line in the medium term.