Overview
If you've ever caught a train here in Victoria, you've probably got an opinion on which stations are good and which ones are...well, horrendous and to be avoided at all costs. But now, RACV has gone and dropped a definitive list of the state's best and worst performing train stations, based on results from its biennial On Track survey.
The transport company collected feedback from over 24,500 locals, in an effort to identify which train services and stations cause the biggest headaches across the network, based on accessibility, convenience, comfort and safety. And then it ranked the whole lot of them.
Poor ol' South Kensington station, which is on the Werribee and Williamstown lines, took out the unenviable title of worst performer across the board, scoring a rating of just 2.48 out of ten. Probably something to do with the fact a whopping 64 percent of respondents said they didn't feel safe there at certain times of the day.
Other stations without many fans include the likes of Broadmeadows, Aircraft, Donnybrook and Mernda line's Ruthven, which each scored of less than four. And all of those were repeat offenders, having featured in the survey's bottom ten on at least two other occasions. Commuters' main gripes included things like annoying cancellations and bus replacement services; inadequate car park spaces, toilets and shelter at stations; and infrequent or overcrowded train services.
Up the happier end, Hawkstowe station on the Mernda line nabbed the survey's top ranking spot, with a hefty score of 9. Fellow Mernda line stations Middle Gorge and Mernda also ranked among the top players, and Frankston line had three high scorers, too: Bentleigh, Southland and Ormond.
Interestingly, top ten performers Carnegie, Rosanna, Bentleigh, Ormond, Bayswater and Gardiner were all recently revamped as part of the government's level crossing removal program — seemingly cementing their status among Victoria's best-loved train stations.
As for the services themselves based on "on-train experiences", the Upfield line ranked worst, with four different mentions in the bottom ten. Mernda again proved the golden child of the bunch as the top-ranked train service, closely followed by the Sandringham line.
Check out the full survey results and see where your local ranked at the RACV On Track page.