Meltham railway station

Early history

A station at this location was first promised in 1898. A signal box at this location was built in 1913.^[7]

In 1937, the townsite of Meltham Heights was gazetted, consisting of the area around Hotham Street.^[8] Transport for Meltham Heights was an issue. With the area being working class, car ownership was uncommon. Residents and the Bayswater Road Board (now the City of Bayswater) agitated for a railway station.^{[9]: 179 [10]}

Bayswater and its surrounding suburbs' population surged following the end of World War II. Housing construction, which was non-existent during the war, proceeded at a rapid rate post-war.^[9]: 207 Development occurred in Meltham Heights, and construction of the station there finally began in 1947. Shortages of labour and materials prevented the station's completion until 1949,^[9]: 179 however, with the station partially completed, the eastern 180 feet (55 m) opened on 14 June 1948.^{[7][10][11][12]}

Modern day

In 2012, Meltham station was upgraded to comply with accessibility and safety requirements. This included resurfacing the platform, an extension to the car park and public art.^[13] The upgrade cost $2 million.^[14]

In 2016, the Public Transport Authority said that closing stations with low patronage was a possibility. On a typical weekday, 524 passengers use Meltham station. The Public Transport Authority later said that there were no immediate plans to close the station, in response to fears that Meltham would be closed.^[14][15][16]

Increased building density is a contentious issue around Meltham. Currently, Meltham is surrounded by 1 to 2-storey buildings. In 2017, City of Bayswater councillors voted against the Meltham precinct structure plan, which would have resulted in six-storey apartments on some roads near the station. However, the Western Australian Planning Commission overruled the council.^{[17][18][19][20][21]}

In 2019 and 2020, the City of Bayswater proposed that a new suburb named Meltham be created, covering the area around Meltham railway station. The purpose of the suburb was to give the area its own identity, as currently it is overshadowed by the rest of Bayswater. Councillors decided in May 2020 to not proceed with the proposed renaming.^[22][23][24]

Construction to add 100 bays to the northern carpark at Meltham station started in February 2020. This is due to the 180 bays that were permanently removed at Bayswater station in late 2020 due to the construction of the new Bayswater station.^[25][26] The new car bays opened in October 2020.^[27]

In 2024, Meltham station was identified as one of three stations to have its platform extended to 150 metres (490 ft) as part of phase one of the platform and signalling upgrade program to allow for six-car trains on the Ellenbrook line.^[28][29]

Platforms