New figures reveal popular choices for Melbourne’s Metro Tunnel station names

THE popular picks for Melbourne’s new Metro Tunnel station names have been revealed and the favourite didn’t always win, with some voted down by a government committee. See if your choice made the list.

ARDEN, St Paul’s and ­Domain were the people’s choices for the names of three new Metro Tunnel stations, but these were voted down by a government committee.

The Herald Sun has ascertained the 10 most popular station names suggested during last year’s lengthy public consultation. But the most popular options for four of the five stations were overlooked.

METRO TUNNEL STATIONS COULD BE NAMED WINTERFELL, WESTEROS OR KING’S LANDING

NAMES OF MELBOURNE’S METRO TUNNEL STATIONS REVEALED

The most popular choice for the new station in North Melbourne was Arden, preferred by 2935 people. Footy tragics also had their say, lodging 168 votes for Shinboner and 193 votes for Kangaroo.

But the state government opted for North Melbourne, which received just 162 votes.

Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan said the state government had looked at more than 50,000 suggestions.

WHO SHOULD HAVE WON? HAVE YOUR SAY BELOW

Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan says the state government has looked at more than 50,000 suggestions. Picture: Lawrence Pinder

“Some were funny and quirky, and all reflect what’s great about our state,” Ms Allan said.

“The commonsense names we chose make clear the ­locations of the stations and will allow everyone using the Metro Tunnel to know where they are on the rail network.

“The final names reflect the places and history of ­Melbourne — and will be part of the huge transformation the Metro Tunnel will provide to our city and state.”

Most of the naming competition’s $40,000 budget went on consulting the indigenous community and on considering how best to incorporate traditional names into the Metro Tunnel project.

Results in the voting for the name of the new station in the south of the CBD were much closer: St Paul’s, Federation and Flinders all polled highly.

But the government eventually settled on the sixth most popular choice, which was Town Hall.

Variations on Station McStationFace drew 1554 votes after a prankster’s campaign to derail the naming competition.

And names drawn from cult TV show Game of Thrones ­outpolled many of the choices based on local geography: Winterfell received more votes than did Melbourne Central and University.

Arthurs Seat local Gillian Hund will get an exclusive look at the Metro Tunnel work sites after her suggestion, State Library, was chosen for the nearby station.

More than 1700 people backed naming the station after the landmark building.

“It’s very exciting, because now the station will have a ­personal appeal to me,” Ms Hund said. “State Library ­Victoria is the country’s oldest public library, so it’s fantastic to see it commemorated.”

HOW THE VOTES FELL

NORTH MELBOURNE STATION

Arden — 2935 votes

Variations of McFace — 372 votes

Hotham — 235 votes

Kangaroo — 193 votes

Shinboner — 168 votes

North Melbourne — 162 votes

Brockway (Simpsons Monorail reference) — 161 votes

Winterfell — 122 votes

Queensberry 121 votes

Wurundejeri — 85 votes

ANZAC STATION

Domain — 2397 votes

The Shrine — 569 votes

ANZAC — 362 votes

Botanic Gardens — 337 votes

Variations of McFace — 299 votes

Botanic — 228 votes

Remembrance — 207 votes

Boonwurrung — 159 votes

St Kilda — 137 votes

Garden — 137 votes

TOWN HALL STATION

St Pauls — 585 votes

Federation — 565 votes

CBD South — 555

Flinders — 487 votes

City Square — 362 votes

Town Hall — 345 votes

South — 308 votes

Variations of McFace — 278

Cathedral — 267 votes

Yarra — 250 votes

STATE LIBRARY

Library — 1725 votes

CBD — 577 votes

RMIT — 576 votes

La Trobe — 443 votes

Winterfell — 410 votes

North — 391 votes

Melbourne Central — 370 votes

Variations of McFace — 309 votes

City Baths — 183 votes

University — 157 votes

An artists' impression of how the Town Hall station would look like.

PARKVILLE STATION

University — 2649 votes

Parkville — 2131 votes

Variations of McFace — 296 votes

Royal — 173 votes

Ogdenville (Simpsons Monorail reference) — 172

Hospital — 128 votes

Winterfell — 120 votes

Melbourne Zoo — 102 votes

Grattan — 96 votes

Royal Park — 94 votes