Major Hurstbridge line delays ahead with weeks of construction

Residents in Melbourne’s north are in for hours of public transport delays, as the government’s major rail duplication project will stop trains from running for six weeks.

Commuters across the northern suburbs are set for weeks of public transport pain with major work starting on the Hurstbridge train line.

Most of the train line will be totally closed for the next six weeks, as the track undergoes a major revamp, as part of the state government’s road and rail Big Build project.

The suburbs getting hit the hardest are those north of Heidelberg, as buses will replace all trains from Macleod railway until April 29.

Three railway stations are upgrades while there will be duplication of 3.5km of train tracks between Greensborough and Wattle Glen.

According to the state government, the duplication of the tracks will allow for more trains to run during the morning peak, with trains running to the city every seven minutes from Greensborough, 10 minutes from Montmorency and Eltham and 20 minutes from Diamond Creek, Wattle Glen and Hurstbridge.

Montmorency railway station was demolished at the weekend and will be rebuilt as a modern facility while platform two at Diamond Creek railway station will be revamped.

Montmorency residents have been told the new station build would cause disruptions with overnight works over the next six weeks.

The Montmorency train station was completely demolished at the start of the six week construction period. (Picture: Facebook)

Bundoora state Labor MP Colin Brooks said the short term pain would be outweighed by the end result.

“With Melbourne‘s northeast growing rapidly, delivering more trains services and less crowding on peak services can’t come soon enough,” Mr Brooks said.

Many residents expressed their frustration with the blown out travel times on social media.

“What I‘m really angry about is that we are expected to pay normal fares for this substandard service … I am going to have to leave home an hour early (and) I will get home an hour late,” Cath Fisher said.

Emma Smith said it took her five hours of travel in total to get to and from the city to Hurstbridge.

“I find myself stranded at Eltham, with no buses to Hurstbridge in sight … While I appreciate I’m to leave additional time for travel, I’m just wondering how much additional time, perhaps three extra hours should be sufficient,” she said.

Find more details on public transport delays on the Hurstbridge line here.