Seaforth railway station explained

Seaforth
Style:Transperth
Style2:ARM
Address:Albany Highway & Seaforth Avenue, Gosnells
Borough:Western Australia
Country:Australia
Coordinates:-32.0849°N 116.011°W
Distance: from Perth
Line:South Western Railway
Platform:2 side platforms
Tracks:2
Opened:4 May 1948
Closed:20 November 2023
Status:Temporarily closed
Accessible:Partial
Owned:Public Transport Authority
Operator:Public Transport Authority
Zone:3
Passengers:136 daily
Pass Year:2017
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Caption:Location of Seaforth station
Mapframe-Zoom:13

Seaforth railway station is a suburban railway station in Gosnells, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. It is on the Armadale line which is part of the Transperth network, and is southwest of Perth station and north of Armadale station. The station opened on 4 May 1948 with low level platforms. High level platforms were added in 1968. The station consists of two side platforms with a pedestrian level crossing. It is not fully accessible due to steep ramps and a lack of tactile paving.

Services are operated by the Public Transport Authority. Peak services reach seven trains per hour in each direction, whilst off-peak services are four trains per hour. The station is one of the least used ones on the Transperth network, with just 136 boardings per day in October 2017. Since November 2023, the station has been temporarily closed for construction of the Victoria Park-Canning Level Crossing Removal Project and the Byford rail extension.

Description

Seaforth station is along the South Western Railway, which links Perth to Bunbury. The northern of this railway, between Perth and Armadale, is used by Armadale line suburban rail services as part of the Transperth network.[1] The line and the station is owned by the Public Transport Authority (PTA), an agency of the Government of Western Australia.[2] Seaforth station is located between Gosnells station to the north and Kelmscott station to the south, within the suburb of Gosnells, Western Australia. The station is between Albany Highway to the east and Seaforth Avenue to the west,, or a 25-minute train journey, from Perth station, and, or a 10-minute train journey, from Armadale station.[1] This places the station in Transperth fare zone three.

Seaforth station consists of two side platforms which are approximately long, enough for a four-car train but not a six-car train. The only way to cross the tracks is at a pedestrian level crossing at the southern end of the station. Two car parks with 41 bays in total are on Seaforth Avenue. Seaforth station is not fully accessible due to the ramps to the platforms being too steep and a lack of tactile paving.[3] [4]

History

After a campaign by the South-East Gosnells Progress Association,[5] the station opened on 4 May 1948,[6] [7] although at the time, all it had were low level platforms and no name.[8] Later that month, the Gosnells Road Board passed a motion that the name "Seaforth" be suggested to the Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR)[9] after the name of a local estate.[10] [11] When WAGR sought approval for the name from Canberra, they were reluctant to approve the name as it was used for stations in all other Australian states. The station had since become colloquially known as "Woop Woop". Seaforth was eventually approved though in April 1949.[12]

In 1968, high level platforms were constructed.[13]

Services

Seaforth station is served by Armadale line services operated by the PTA.[14] Since 20 November 2023, the station has been temporarily closed for construction of the Victoria Park-Canning Level Crossing Removal Project and the Byford rail extension, which require that large sections of the Armadale line's track be rebuilt to be elevated.[15] The line goes between Perth station and Armadale station. Armadale line services reached seven trains per hour during peak, dropping down to four trains per hour between peaks. At night, there were two trains per hour, dropping to one train per hour in the early hours of the morning. Apart from at night and on Sundays/public holidays, most train services followed the "C" stopping pattern, which skips Burswood, Victoria Park, Carlisle, Welshpool and Queens Park stations. There are also two "B" stopping pattern services which ran during the afternoon Armadale-bound. Those services were the same as the "C" pattern except they stop at Queens Park. Starting at night, trains stopped at all stations. On Sundays and public holidays, half of all trains are "C" pattern trains and half are all stops trains.[16]

On Seaforth Avenue is a pair of bus stops for route 907, the rail replacement bus service. On Albany Highway is a pair of bus stops for route 220, which runs along Albany Highway from Perth to Armadale.[17]

In the 2013–14 financial year, Seaforth station had 51,887 boardings, making it the least used station on the Armadale and Thornlie lines.[18] On an average weekday in October 2017, the station had 136 boardings, making it the least used Transperth station.[19] The weekend average number of boardings was 170 in October 2018, making it the second least used Transperth station after Success Hill station.[20] In 2018, City of Armadale Mayor Henry Zelones said that several hundred hectares of vacant land nearby had been set for high density development, which would increase patronage.[19]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Manual – Rail Access . Public Transport Authority . 30 August 2021 . 20 September 2021 . 21 September 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210921045822/https://www.pta.wa.gov.au/Portals/15/AA_DOCUMENTS/About_us/Working%20with%20PTA/Safety%20resources/8800-400-001%20-%20Rail%20Access%20Manual.pdf . dead.
  2. Web site: Public Transport Authority: Railway System: April 2019 . Public Transport Authority . 8 April 2022 . April 2019 . 24 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190724085310/https://www.pta.wa.gov.au/Portals/15/AA_DOCUMENTS/Our_system/Freight%20network/PTA%20Rail%20Network%20Map_2019.pdf . live .
  3. Web site: Seaforth Station – Access Map . Transperth . 8 April 2022 . 28 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220328092840/https://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/timetablePDFs/BusStationMaps/Seaforth%20Station.pdf . live .
  4. Web site: Seaforth Station . Transperth . 8 April 2022 . 8 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220408120321/https://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/Using-Transperth/Station-Facilities/Stations-Maps?sid=65 . live .
  5. News: Gosnells' Roundabout . . 23 January 1948 . 8 April 2022 . 4 . National Library of Australia . 19 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220419060652/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148654541 . live .
  6. News: Railway Notice . The West Australian . 1 May 1948 . 27 February 2023 . 24 . National Library of Australia.
  7. Web site: Our history . Public Transport Authority . 8 April 2022 . 16 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211016074956/https://www.pta.wa.gov.au/about-us/our-role/our-history#1901-to-1950-27 . live .
  8. News: Gosnells' Roundabout . . 30 April 1948 . 8 April 2022 . 5 . National Library of Australia . 19 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220419060654/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148656556 . live .
  9. News: W. H. Langford Re-elected Chairman Gosnells Rd Board . . 20 May 1948 . 8 April 2022 . 7 . National Library of Australia . 19 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220419060655/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/148657081 . live .
  10. Web site: City of Gosnells . Seaforth Park (fmr) . inHerit . 8 April 2022 . 12 Feb 2020 . 8 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220408120320/http://inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au/Public/Inventory/PrintSingleRecord/a738ab78-ccf7-47f7-82cb-0d3596538bd2 . live .
  11. Web site: A condensed history . City of Gosnells . 8 April 2022 . 25 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220325214645/https://www.gosnells.wa.gov.au/sites/default/files/seamless/condensed_history_of_the_gosnells_area.pdf . live .
  12. News: Siding Christened – Officially . . 28 April 1949 . 8 April 2022 . 6 . National Library of Australia . 19 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220419060653/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/149056884 . live .
  13. Book: Arnold . John . A History of Bringing the Rails to Pinjarra : The Southwest Railway of Western Australia . 2006 . 0646142283 . 12.
  14. Web site: Transperth . Public Transport Authority . 8 April 2022 . 5 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211005173906/https://www.pta.wa.gov.au/our-services/transperth . live .
  15. Web site: Perth's Armadale/Thornlie rail line closure is underway. Here's what you need to know about getting around . ABC News . 20 November 2023 . 20 November 2023.
  16. Web site: Armadale/Thornlie Line Train Timetable . Transperth . 8 April 2022 . 21 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220321112324/https://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/timetablepdfs/Armadale%20Thornlie%20Line%2020190804.pdf . live .
  17. Web site: Bus Route 220 Timetable . Transperth . 8 April 2022 . 19 June 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180619023703/http://www.transperth.wa.gov.au/Timetables/Details/Bus/220 . live .
  18. Web site: Question On Notice No. 4248 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 25 June 2015 by Mr M. Mcgowan . Parliament of Western Australia . 8 April 2022 . 19 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220419060653/https://parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament/pquest.nsf/viewLAPQuestByDate/86E328F41D2F80B348257E6E002927CE . live .
  19. Web site: Perpitch . Nicolas . Welcome to Seaforth — the loneliest train station on the Perth rail network . ABC News . 8 April 2022 . 13 March 2018 . 8 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220408120320/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-03-13/perth-least-and-most-used-train-stations-seaforth/9540522 . live .
  20. Web site: Acott . Kent . Is public transport off the rails? . The West Australian . 8 April 2022 . 27 January 2019 . 8 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220408120320/https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/is-public-transport-off-the-rails-ng-b881083423z . live .