Historic Flinders Street Station

[Aussie Steve]

PROPOSED NEW FLINDERS STREET STATION SHOWING ROOF


BALLROOM


CONCERT HALL


LADIES PHYSICAL CULTURE CLASS




BILLIARD ROOM


DINING ROOM




CONCOURSE FRUIT STALL








PLATFORM






ENTRANCE TO PLATFORM 1



ARTIST IMPRESSION OF TRANSPORT HOUSE NEW RAILWAY HEADQUARTERS OVER FLINDERS STREET STATION 1974

[Tyson]

I wish they could restore it so the platforms and concourse look like those old pictures

[The Collector]

Flinders Street Station
Below are images of this Edwardian Baroque masterpiece throughout its history.



The original Flinders Street Station.



Above and below, the current Flinders Street Station built between 1905-10.





Photograph taken in 1946 on a rainy day.



The Ballroom.



Flinders Street station decorated for the Victorian Railways Centenary and royal visit.



Recent postcard showing that the triangular pediments on top of the Flinders Street entrances have been removed.



An Edwardian postcard showing the Elizabeth Street entrance to Flinders Street station with pediments.
Below a recent photograph I've taken of Flinders Street Station from Elizabeth Street, clearly showing the missing triangular pediments on both sides of the clock tower.



Two more of my own.



West end of station, Flinders Street.



The clock tower.

To wrap it up, two more old postcards.

[tayser]

I miss the ramps!

[Fabian]

It looked alot better back then. Much more organised and better laid out. I'm always getting lost inside the station if I ever use it when in Melbourne.

[Mickeebee]

Are you serious.......it's completely open plan now....no way could you get lost.

[The Olderfleet]

Originally Posted by tayser

I miss the ramps!

Me too. Why did they even remove these? Surely they're much more efficient at moving people than escalators are, where people can only move up in single file? Also, the ramps would enable the disabled to access the platforms like everyone else, negating the requirement for lifts.

They ripped the last ramp out last year on the platform closest to the Yarra, and I missed my opportunity to photograph it first.

Here's a recent Flinders Street pic of mine....

[invincible]

It's a sign of an increasingly lazy culture. Perhaps in 100 years, all railway platforms will become massive conveyor belts so passengers just have to step out of the train and then stand as they are automatically whisked up to the street.

I'd say that those ramps might be slightly on the steep side for people in wheelchairs travelling unassisted though.

[euralto]

The worst thing about losing the ramps is that the newer system is so much worse at moving crowds off the platform. Putting a flight of stairs in between the two escalators discourages people from using the escalators properly like they do in the underground stations.

Now when getting off a train you have the choice of standing on the escalator which is to the left (people fill both sides of the escalator) or walking up the stairs on the right and getting to the top more slowly. The crowd swells up around the base of the escalator as people are not being moved quickly enough, and there is congestion as people cross each other's paths. It's so frustrating!

[invincible]

There's much better flow going via the subway that connects to Degraves St, since very few people go that way, and many aren't even aware of its existence.

[euralto]

I love that subway. Finding it for the first time and walking through Degraves St and Centre Place on a cold winter's morning is a wonderful experience.

[Blabbyboy]

They should put a sign on escalators as they do in some parts of the world: keep left unless overtaking.

[Shumway]

I've never understood why they don't do that here, such a simple thing to do that saves so much anguish in crowded areas.

[Favco750]

simple reason is that most people just don't care for anyone else.

I won a quiz at school in grade 8 after an intense semi final because I could spell and knew what expectorate meant. Thanks FSS..........

[invincible]

Originally Posted by euralto

I love that subway. Finding it for the first time and walking through Degraves St and Centre Place on a cold winter's morning is a wonderful experience.

Definitely beats all the goths who sit around the main entrance all day.

[Jason R]

Originally Posted by The Olderfleet

Me too. Why did they even remove these?

They did not comply with modern anti-discrimination legislation. The ramps were steeper than allowable for wheelchairs.

[dunwyn]

One other problem is that the platforms don't start at the escalators so those who disembark from carriages behind the escalators get caught up in the congestion. The whole platforms or the escalators need to be moved. The other option is bring back the ramps.

With the "Keep left unless overtaking" this is best adhered during peak hours, most people during this time “politely” tell you to move it!
I hate shopping because of this issue especially in shopping centres and department stores. You just want to say “move your arse!”

[The Olderfleet]

Originally Posted by Jason R

They did not comply with modern anti-discrimination legislation. The ramps were steeper than allowable for wheelchairs.

Big deal. The people in wheelchairs can use the lift as they have to do now anyway. And the rest of us could have used the ramps and we all would be moving on and off those platforms a whole lot faster. And the station would be in a far better state of preservation as a result. And greenhouse gas emissions would be less.

Furthermore, no-one has removed the ramps at Camberwell, North Melbourne or South Yarra stations, so their presence cannot be that much of a problem.

[Dean]

Has anyone got a spare 150-200 mill for me??? I'd love to turn that beautiful long golden building into a five star hotel. maybe call it 'Station hotel' or 'The Flinders'. What a location in the heart of all the action. Atm it's pretty much empty and dilapidated on the inside.

[Favco750]

Originally Posted by The Olderfleet

Big deal. The people in wheelchairs can use the lift as they have to do now anyway. And the rest of us could have used the ramps and we all would be moving on and off those platforms a whole lot faster. And the station would be in a far better state of preservation as a result. And greenhouse gas emissions would be less.

Furthermore, no-one has removed the ramps at Camberwell, North Melbourne or South Yarra stations, so their presence cannot be that much of a problem.

malvern, armadale, toorak, hawksburn, balaclava, elsternwick, gardenvale to add a few more..........