The new Town Hall Station at the southern end of Swanston Street will improve access to some of Melbourne's most iconic tourist destinations including Federation Square, Southbank, Arts Centre Melbourne, St Paul's Cathedral and other culturally significant landmarks.
Town Hall Station will open with the Metro Tunnel in 2025 and will eventually have a direct link to Melbourne Airport via Melbourne Airport Rail.
Easy to access
Town Hall Station will be located under Swanston Street, between Flinders Street and Collins Street. It will include an underground passenger connection to Flinders Street Station, allowing commuters to conveniently interchange between Metro Tunnel and City Loop train services without having to touch off and on again.
Passengers will be able to access the station from 7 entry points – at City Square, Federation Square, Campbell Arcade, Flinders Street, Swanston Street, Cocker Alley and Scott Alley.
Design
Town Hall Station will be a gateway to some of Melbourne’s most popular landmarks and destinations, and the surrounding precinct will be changed to take advantage of nearby laneways and open spaces.
City Square
Following construction of the new station, City Square will be returned to the community as a public gathering and events space.
A station entrance will be located at the northern end of the square and a rebuilt Mockridge Fountain will be integrated into the station entrance area. The Burke and Wills monument will also be reinstated in the square.
The renewed City Square will include open space for functions and celebrations, shops, cafes and space for outdoor dining.
Raised edges along the square will provide casual seating for people to sit back and enjoy the bustling city atmosphere. The Swanston Street side of the square will be revitalised with new trees.
Connecting streets and laneways
The Town Hall Station precinct will connect a vibrant network of local laneways, opening up new pedestrian routes and evenly distributing foot traffic around the new station.
Existing laneways at Cocker Alley and Scott Alley will be revitalised and extended to provide a direct connection into the new station development and through to Flinders Street, and the iconic King Neptune sculpture by Charles Bush will be preserved.
Around the precinct, street improvements will include wider pavements, more trees and increased seating.
Passenger connection from Town Hall Station to Flinders Street Station via Campbell Arcade
Campbell Arcade will be the location of an underground pedestrian connection between Flinders Street Station and Town Hall Station, with a design that preserves the key heritage features of the arcade and ensures the majority of shopfronts remain.
The connection will minimise impacts to heritage aspects of the main Flinders Street Station building and will reduce crowding on the Flinders Street Station concourse by taking passengers directly to platforms at the station.
To ensure this passenger connection is accessible for all community members, lifts are being installed at each of the Flinders Street Station platforms.
Getting to and from Town Hall Station
The new station precinct will directly interface with popular transport routes along Swanston, Collins and Flinders streets. Station access features will include:
- a direct underground connection into Flinders Street Station via Campbell Arcade
- an entrance at Federation Square to improve access to this important civic space as well as the Yarra River, Birrarung Marr and beyond
- a station entrance at City Square to reduce pedestrian congestion along Swanston Street and relieve pressure on the Flinders Street/Swanston Street pedestrian crossing
- more than 70 new bike parking spaces
- safe interchanges with nearby tram stops on Collins, Flinders and Swanston streets.