Happy long weekend! It’s a big one for events in Melbourne. Footy is back with a Sunday night game at the MCG, there’s the Formula 1 Grand Prix at Albert Park, and Moomba events. As well as any number of smaller events – as happens every weekend.
One thing everyone has been wondering since the Metro tunnel fully opened is the effect on big events at the MCG and Marvel Stadium, now that the Cranbourne/Pakenham and Sunbury lines no longer serve Southern Cross or Richmond stations.
The big MCG test will be this Sunday’s football. There was also NRL at the AAMI Park on Thursday night (about 18,000 attended), and series of Ed Sheeran concerts at Marvel Stadium last week.
For the Ed Sheeran (a well known train user) concerts, extra trains ran on various lines after the event. Curiously, the extra Frankston Line trains only started from Flinders Street, not Southern Cross, which seems illogical – perhaps platform space is an issue at SC, but they’ve done better than this in the past.
This weekend
For this weekend, there are works on the Belgrave/Lilydale and Alamein lines which will mean the hassle of bus replacements for many people.
Obviously not ideal – but to a certain extent they’re stuck – almost every weekend there are works somewhere – in fact from what I can see, there’s only one day this month when there are no works on the Metro network at all: next Thursday 12th March.
But you’d really hope they tried their best to avoid the busiest lines being hit on the busiest weekend.
Apart from the bustituted lines, they have added extra trains on most other lines – broadly they seem to have targeted many of the worst wait times in the evenings and on Sunday morning, with the maximum wait generally down to 15-20 minutes (from as much as 40). Good stuff.
Grand Prix
Over on the trams, they’ve made adjustments this year to services to Albert Park.
- Anzac station is a good option for trips that used to be done via St Kilda Road trams, especially to gate 5, but also to cut the time and tram crowding getting to gates 8 and 9.
- The usual Spencer Street trams along route 96 run to gates 1 and 2
- A different route to gate 3 on the north side of the Park: a shuttle from Flagstaff station along William St, Market Street/Queensbridge (also close to Flinders Street Station), Kings Way, then turning into Sturt Street/Eastern Road, Park Street, then into Clarendon Street.
I assume that’ll have the gunzels out and about, as the gate 3 shuttle is quite different to the usual route, combining portions of routes 58, 1 and 12. To make all this work, some tram routes are replaced by buses.
What they haven’t got is the Park Street tram link – descoped from the Metro Tunnel project – which which would have allowed trams from Anzac station to easily reach gate 3.
A shame, as the closer you can get people to the track by high capacity heavy rail, the more efficient things are.
South-east, Sunday night
It’s worth highlighting Sunday night – when crowds will be heading home from the Grand Prix, the football, and Moomba events.
Again, there are extra services on most lines (including some V/Line). So how will it go for the south-east, most affected by the Metro tunnel changes?
On the Frankston line, trains will be running every 6 to 7 minutes – in other words three times the usual evening 20 minute evening service. The extras only run from Richmond, so they won’t help the Moomba/GP crowds.
Passengers from the MCG going to the Cranbourne/Pakenham line will have a choice
- head towards Town Hall station (about a 15 minute walk away) for a direct train home
- walk to Richmond (8+ minute depending on crowding) to catch one of those Frankston trains to Malvern or Caulfield, then change
- walk to Jolimont (about 5 minutes) for a train to Flinders Street, then change to Town Hall – but see below
The normal 10 minute frequency on the Cranbourne/Pakenham line is pretty good but they are running extra services after the game.
Curiously these originate at Malvern not in the city, so it appears the official view is that at least some people will catch a Frankston train to Malvern or Caulfield and change there. This directly focuses on MCG crowds while missing most GP and Moomba patrons.
It also seems odd to have them departing just 3 minutes after the regular services – preferably they’d be closer to the following service to more evenly spread the loads.
The other thing that’s been noticed is that there are no extra trains from Jolimont to the city after the game. This means waits of up to 19 minutes for people who want to head to the city to change onto another train – including Cranbourne/Pakenham but also Sunbury and other western suburbs lines that don’t run via Jolimont or Richmond, and also V/Line.
For many, walking is an option. Many western suburbs people have done this for years and don’t understand the fuss. It’s a nice walk if the weather is nice.
Apart from the provision of extra services, authorities will need to ensure that they have adequate staff available to help direct people both before and after events.
How this all plays out as anybody’s guess, but it does seem to me that they’ve only done part of the job in terms of adding extra services to cope with the crowds. Hopefully they’ll thoroughly review and improve arrangements as the year goes on.
It’s a busy weekend, but increasingly, every weekend in Melbourne is busy. Three big events on one day is unusual, but there are often lots of medium-sized events all the time.
It underscores that the usual half hourly services on most lines in the evenings (and worse on Sunday mornings) are just completely inadequate for a city the size of Melbourne in 2026.
Thankfully on some lines they’re improving, but it’s slow progress.
More:
- Transport Victoria advice for AFL at Marvel/MCG; advice for Grand Prix
- Jeremy Burge timed the walk from the MCG to Town Hall (He’s doing some great videos; worth a follow on Instagram)
- ABC Radio: segment on the rail works this weekend (starts at 48 minutes)
- Dandenong Star: Footy test for new Metro Tunnel routes
- My old blog from 2018: How big events can be a catalyst for better public transport
- Blog last year at Moomba time: Weekend trains not keeping up
Update 7/3/2026: Turns out they’re running express buses to Anzac from Camberwell and Box Hill for GP patrons. But most people won’t be able to easily find the information about it.
Update 12/3/2026: For tonight’s MCG football, they ran extra trains from Richmond out along the Dandenong line, though Craig Halsall noted the platform screens indicating they only took passengers as far as Caulfield.
18 replies on “Big event weekend”
The Grand Prix period is a time when people who rarely if ever use public transport take the train. The Belgrave and Lilydale lines attract their fair share of these very occasional patrons. I can imagine some frustration if these people especially don’t realise there are rail replacement buses operating between Box Hill and Parliament. I can also imagine there will be further frustration in the area around Parliament station where people from the Belgrave and Lilydale, especially those not used to public transport find the tram services to the Grand Prix are some distance away.
At the same time, I like Daniel Bowen’s comments about the gunzel photographers out getting the coverage. I wonder how many later realise their photo collections are overweighted by special workings or one off occasions rather then regular everyday workings. The work of the intrepid enthusiast is forever ongoing.
I am very surprised that a ‘Football Special’ running direct from Flinders/Richmond hasnt been provided for the Cranbourne/Packenham lines. I just assumed this would be the case, espeically for the hour or so at the end of the game to aid the big crowds leaving the G. I expect this will be done for future big games at the G, as the overcrowding on Frankston trains is bound to be terrible/dangerous.
All good points.
I noticed that what seemed like a test of shunting the Metro One trains from South Yarra to Dandenong on 3 consecutive nights is the reverse of the original Sth Yarra to city shunt plan. This combined with Frankston running every 10 minutes made for simple in station interchange. So both lines running every 10 minutes. The original 5 & 6 platforms were used. So in fact with the Frankston dn on platform 4 it was a direct walk across the platform to pl 5 for the connecting train. That then run for a section reverse. I think they will try this on footy nights. The next step could be run the shunt from Richmond – Dandendong on footy nights. Guess this would need a set of points just dn from Richmonmd that does not exist. Curious?
Now I have had another read. How can Metro One dn trains originate at Malvern? This must mean dead running so it can only be a shunt from Sth Yarra or even worse running the entire way thru the tunnel without stopping. I suspect it will be Sth Yarra – Dandenong shunts or even Flinders St – Dandenong shunts that would be an insult not stopping at Richmond.
Yep, I do not understand running extra services on Cranbourne-Pakenham line post-AFL, but only from Malvern.
Running from Town Hall (or in practice, West Footscray) would give a much better 9 tph experience, and likely they wouldn’t be full – so there’d still be room for people transferring at Caulfield.
Even just practically, the experience of waiting 6-7 min max at Town Hall is much greater than up to 10 min. That extra few min makes a big difference.
Half the Lilydale/Belgrave line out of action and still no orbital SmartBuses after 9PM on Sundays. Joy.
PSA for those from Box Hill and beyond who do decide to use PT though, you can also catch the 109 tram or 302 bus to Box Hill, or the 907 to Mitcham, instead of cramming a crush-loaded rail replacement bus at Parliament. The 109 often matches the speed of the all-stations rail replacement bus, but of course all bets are off if (P)TV actually bothers to run proper express buses straight to Box Hill via the freeway e.g. not the crappy “limited express” from the city to Hawthorn getting stuck in gridlock on Bridge Rd.
Good luck with the hopeless Sunday timetable though. To politicians, Melbourne is still a ghost town between 6PM Friday and 9AM Monday and the Victorian Government has made sure to leave the timetables in the 20th century to reflect that, despite trains and trams being somewhere between full and crush-loaded at 11PM even on regular weeknights with no events. Running two to three services per hour at the absolute best will do that (or just one per hour in the case of buses).
Isn’t the main event for gunzels the Newport Workshops Open Weekend? 10am – 5pm each day.
Trains galore plus a shuttle bus running from Newport, including a 1953 AEC Regal tramways bus.
https://www.steamrail.com.au/opendays
I note there’s free travel on the Metro Tunnel between State Library, Town Hall and Anzac for Grand Prix ticket holders (not overly
publicised), but the rest of the network is the usual weekend cap (+ seniors, disability pensioners, carers and kids free)
There is a handful of extra Metro Tunnel trains in each direction on Saturday and Sunday morning (you’ll need to look closely) but mostly just the bog standard 10 min headways, which is somewhat disappointing.
It will be will be interesting to see how loadings go, especially if Frankston Line passengers work out they can get to the track faster by walking from Anzac.
Savvy Frankston Line passengers for Gates 8 – 10 would be better to opt for trams (or the 604 bus) from stations like Toorak, Armadale and Glen Huntly.
Re: Ed Sheeran – it’s likely the extra Frankston trains ran from Southern Cross but the data was shown elsewhere as the TD number changes at Flinders St.
There was some confusion after the AFL games last year with Frankston trains using both platforms 12 & 13 whenever there were no Pakenham/Cranbourne trains via the loop or only running to/from Caulfield (trains even running empty cars via the loop to get in position).
It will be interesting to see if they keep all Frankston trains on platform 12 after games this season. At least if they leave half empty they have a chance to pick up more passengers at Flinders St and Richmond (after a Melbourne Park concert for instance)
Having a look at the late Sunday afternoon timetable before the footy, there are trains every 20 mins that will start at Cheltenham & run express to Caulfield
This means the extras at Caulfield will be effectively empty, ready to fill up with transfers from the Pakenham/Cranbourne Lines
HOWEVER – they seem to have these using the centre track and in some cases overtaking the stopper, which also has extended run times. Hmmm!
They have been doing similar things like this in the weekday afternoon peak too since the August temporary timetable – originally these ran express Cheltenham – Caulfield then SAS, but since the Feb 1st Big Switch they now run as NON-PSR services that stop all stations from Cheltenham to Richmond (then as an advertised service around the loop).
There would be merit in having the trains from Frankston running express Cheltenham – Caulfield in the afternoon peak at least, for a quicker trip in and not to overload these trains.
As for after the game, passengers going to stations beyond Cheltenham (or Mordialloc later in the season) might be wise to get on the first service that comes and then wait at Cheltenham/Mordialloc for a train going further down the line, rather than risk being crowded out of a Frankston service at Richmond.
For Belgrave Lilydale and Alamein users there is an express shuttle from Boxhill and Camberwell direct to Anzac for the Grand Prix. Nice to see that they though about this even if it is only from 8am to 12pm and every 15 minutes
There seems to be significant additional services catered for the footy on Sunday which then operate outbound to assist passengers egressing from the grand prix noting the uplift on such lines like Sandringham, Mernda and Hurstbridge to name a few.
In addition when you select going to Hurstbridge from Jolimont in the Transort victoria app for Sunday there are departures from Jolimont at:
09:58
10:10
10:15
10:18
10:24
10:31
10:40
10:43
10:50
One thing I hope V/Line avoid for next year is scheduling maintenance blitzes on the Bendigo Line to coincide with Moomba, Grand Prix and the busy long weekend
I understand that V/Line needed to avoid the Good Charlotte concert in Bendigo but still think although no time is perfect for trackwork, we always have a maintenance blitz at this time of year that often coincides with major concerts and possibly the Grand Prix
Then with the recent rainfall, I became anxious that replacement coaches may be extended for a longer period due to waterproofing a bridge in Castlemaine. I would’ve liked reassurance that works were not delayed but turns out they’re now set to resume on the original date of Monday. I also suspect that V/Line were hoping to finish works early to get trains running again
Also question the need to do 2 consecutive weeks of routine maintenance (not major project work) when other operators around Australia keep routine maintenance to weekends. For some people with disability the buses put people off travelling altogether or for neurodivergent people, they may put up with the bus but experience meltdowns at home afterwards or even in the lead up to the buses once the news has been broken. I now question whether more efficient shorter disruptions could be used acknowledging that V/Line are also trying to avoid shutting down the Bendigo line every weekend with its high weekend patronage. I’m assuming V/Line are also trying to do deep maintenance but do struggle with the length of the disruption for routine maintenance compared to other operators
The Australian Rail Track Corporation for example even complete major projects such as InLand Rail during short shutdowns of the Albury Line rather than multi month shutdowns used for Big Build projects here in Victoria. So I suspect some longer shutdowns occur in Victoria because it’s cheaper to mobilise equipment and it’s easier from an admin perspective while it sucks for us commuters
This video from Taitset acknowledges that we should be able to rely on our train service (he does acknowledge we can’t go back to 1970s safety standards but I hope that solutions to maintenance that reduce the need for replacement buses are given priority): https://youtu.be/VdwYdMF4nMs
Can confirm big wait between trains on platform 12 getting home from Ed on Saturday with ridiculous overcrowding. Instructions were unclear that there were more trains running from Flinders St. It shouldn’t have to be this hard.
Also saw a full platform of people on platform 1 at Caulfield on Thursday evening going to the NRL. That will be interesting for big AFL games….
Yesterday (Saturday 7 March), I took the 907 bus from Mitcham rather than experience the dreaded rail replacement bus from Box Hill. The loadings were excellent. As they were on my return journey mid afternoon. Many through passengers from and to Mitcham.
I checked out route 58a. It is running as a normal service taking “passengers offerring” at each stop in addition to the Grand Prix Prix patrons. Route 58a was operated by B2 class trams exclusively.
A pointsman is stationed in Park Street at Clarendon Street because of the two routes passing, 1 and 58a. The points in Clarendon Street Park Street are set for the curve since route 12 is not operating during the Grand Prix.
I boarded an inbound tram in Clarendon Street and Park Street. It was around 1145. There was one passenger aboard and another had boarded with me at Park Street.
Daniel mentioned there was much to interest the “gunzel” fraternity but I didn’t see any others out getting the coverage.
The life of the gunzel/intrepid enthusiast is one of hard work and euphoria. It was an experience beyond description as I rode tram 2027 around the curves from Clarendon Street into Park Street and, a few minutes later, from into Sturt Street into Kings Way. I am confident I would have ridden the Clarendon into Park curves on an enthusiast special many years ago but Sturt into Kings Way was a new experience.
Prior commitments prevented me from getting any further coverage but I noticed the CBD was awash with people – and motor cars.
Other relevant events this weekend: Hilltop Hoods at Rod Laver Arena (Fri, Sat nights), GFlip at Margaret Court Arena (Sat, Sun nights). After both Fri and Sat night events there was crowding on the Frankston platform at Richmond, and large numbers transferring to the Dandenong line at Caulfield. It’s going to take time for people to figure out a walk back into the CBD and boarding at Town Hall station is likely to be easier for some people.
Regarding the walk from MCG to Town Hall Station, it takes considerably longer this weekend due to the cluster of Moomba carnival attractions set up in Birrarung Marr and the crowds it has attracted into the area
For my own interest, I kept track of planned works between June and October last year and found just 1 single day when the entire Metro network was running as intended first train to last (Grand Final Day). A lot of that can be attributed to the nightly Newport-Werribee shutdowns for XT2 testing, but there was plenty more without that. I haven’t updated it in a while, maybe I should go back and have another look. I reckon a weekend where you have somewhere around a quarter of a million people, probably more, coming into the city on Sunday should probably be off limits for works, especially on a big trunk section like the Ringwood lines.
I didn’t get the chance to try it yesterday but I would argue that the Town Hall walk from the MCG can be annoying right now. Especially if you’re coming from the Punt Road end, you have to walk all the way around the concourse through the crowds exiting the ground, over the congested bridge, and once you get to Flinders St you need to cross it, then cross Swanston St (should be fixed with the Fed Square entrance at least), then go down 4 or so escalators. I can see why people would just try their luck at Richmond. Richmond would be a perfectly fine and really the superior option if they run enough trains, but my gut tells me that every 7 minutes isn’t often enough to sufficiently clear the platforms, especially if you have people standing around waiting for trains to Mentone-Frankston for up to 15 minutes. You could probably justify the full PM peak timetable (sans expresses) after really big games, every 5 to Cheltenham, every 10 to Frankston. That’s to say nothing of Jolimont, which really should be the primary way to get back to the city. Ridiculous to have no extra services.
Re: the Grand Prix. I’m a regular attendant (although only Friday this year, getting a little too expensive now). They made an obvious effort last year to reduce pressure on the trams by promoting walking to the city (shorter than you think!), venues in St Kilda and South Melbourne, concerts by the lake, later support races after F1 sessions etc. Anzac Station is in an unfortunate spot for this event, being a long way from the main straight, but it still looked a little underutilised on Friday, and I don’t think the AGPC promoted it properly. During the peak periods, like at the end of F1 sessions, it would be probably be the fastest way out for a lot of people (if they can handle the walk) who otherwise have to face 30-45 minute, sometimes longer, waits at Gate 1/2 for a tram, then a slower trip to the city.
Prahran Station (1.2km from Gate 8 and 9) continues to get no publicity at all, and crazier still, the Sandringham line persists with 40 minute frequency on Sunday mornings. This is obviously unacceptable on any weekend, but any warrior of general admission knows that you have to be at the track mega-early on Sunday if you want a good spot to watch the race. Same goes for some of the altered tram routes in the SE, which would be helpful for some people (although I get why you wouldn’t want the masses on them) if they ran more often. That was typically my way to the track until this year, train to South Yarra, Toorak, Armadale or Glen Huntly, then the tram to St Kilda Rd.
I went to the football last night – I was sitting on Level 4 of the Olympic Stand so headed to Jolimont for a train to Flinders Street and then changed to Town Hall for a train to West Footscray (which is the first time I’ve transferred stations there – seems easier to interchange there than at Melbourne Central/State Library). Took me 36 minutes from touching on at Jolimont to touching off at West Footscray. There was one empty train that went through Jolimont towards Flinders Street first without stopping (presumably coming back as a football special) then the next one also appeared empty but stopped, and once at Flinders Street was turning around. Busy but not crush crowded, and appeared not many people off the train heading to Town Hall. I didn’t time it but I’d say from standing up on the final siren to walking in the front door at home would’ve been just on the hour, which I think is as good as can be expected – definitely helps not having to really wait for trains.