Location \ Mentone
Client \ Victorian Government, Level Crossing Removal Authority (LXRA)
Budget \ $588 M (total project value)
Duration \ 2020 – 2021
In partnership with\ Cox Architecture

The Victorian Government’s Level Crossing Removal Project is overseeing the largest rail infrastructure project in the state’s history. It will see the removal of 75 of Melbourne’s most dangerous and congested level crossings by 2025. The project will also see the upgrading or building of more than 27 train stations. Removing the level crossings will reduce risk for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists as well as creating new community spaces for residents and visitors to enjoy.

Rush Wright Associates is working with the Level Crossing Removal Authority (LXRA) and the Victorian Government to assist with the upgrade of a selection of stations on the Frankston Line.

At Mentone, the rail has been lowered into a rail trench, with the road rebuilt at its existing level. The existing heritage-listed station was used in the final design as part of a new ‘heritage bridge’ over the rail line. The new station location integrates with the Mentone Renaissance project. The project will include more than three kilometres of walking and cycling paths connecting the Mentone and Cheltenham station precincts. It will also include improved lighting, accessibility and car parking.

The five heritage-listed trees — two Norfolk Island pines and three Canary Island date palms — in the Mentone station gardens were protected in their current location during construction and a major landscaping program will create a new ‘garden bridge’ across the rail trench near Balcombe Road.