Fix Chelsea station crossing

Wednesday the 30th of October 2024
Victorian Legislative Council

Rachel Payne MP spoke in parliament, echoing the sentiments of many local Chelsea residents in requesting practical changes be made to the Chelsea station pedestrian crossing for better accessibility.

Sign the petition to fix the Chelsea Station pedestrian crossing

RACHEL PAYNE (South-Eastern Metropolitan) – To ask the Minister for Housing (for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety):

My constituency question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety.

My constituent is a Chelsea resident and volunteers with a community group who dedicate their spare time to advocating for accessible local amenities. One such amenity is Chelsea train station. While the level crossing removal has improved traffic flow, pedestrian access from the station’s entrance to Chelsea’s retail precinct is now hampered by metal barriers.

Commuters exiting the station must now walk several hundred metres to the nearest crossing. For some this might be a minor inconvenience, but for many elderly residents and those with physical disabilities this has created a major accessibility issue.

Current ABS data suggests that nearly one-third of Chelsea residents are aged over 55, with 32 per cent of residents suffering one or more chronic health conditions. Such a large cohort of our community should not be an afterthought.

My constituent asks: will the minister ensure the installation of a pedestrian crossing at the main entrance to Chelsea station?

Fix Chelsea Station Crossing – Response Received 4th of December:

I thank the Member for South-Eastern Metropolitan Region for her question and acknowledge community interest regarding Chelsea station.

The Level Crossing Removal Project (LXRP) delivered the new station and has advised that a pedestrian crossing was not provided directly outside the station entry due to minimum space requirements for people entering and exiting the station. Effectively there was not enough ‘storage’ space to safely hold people there. If a crossing was built at the exit there was potential for people to spill out onto the roadway during busy times while waiting to cross the road.

The Department of Transport and Planning (DTP) conducted an onsite investigation in October 2022 and more recently the site was again visited in November 2024. This was to assess the current footpath and potential installation of another crossing at the entrance, in addition to the two existing crossings.

The distance from the station exit to the southern pedestrian operated signals (POS) is 95m away, whereas the northern POS is 135m away from the entrance.

From a pedestrian safety perspective, DTP does not support an additional crossing near the central station entrance given the space and safety constraints.

Direct pedestrian crossings built right in front of other station exits, where there are space constraints, has been raised by road safety specialists as a safety issue. The location of the current pedestrian crossings provides plenty of space for pedestrians and meets relevant Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) access requirements.

Hon Melissa Horne MP
Minister for Casino, Gaming and Liquor Regulation
Minister for Local Government
Minister for Roads and Road Safety
Minister for Ports and Freight

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