Bacchus Marsh railway station, Victoria

Bacchus Marsh
Station front in May 2008
Location	Station Street, Bacchus Marsh Australia
Coordinates	37°41′15″S 144°26′13″E / 37.6876°S 144.4369°E / -37.6876; 144.4369Coordinates: 37°41′15″S 144°26′13″E / 37.6876°S 144.4369°E / -37.6876; 144.4369
Elevation	105 metres (343 ft)
Owned by	VicTrack
Operated by	V/Line
Line(s)	Serviceton
Distance	50.86 kilometres from Southern Cross
Platforms	1
Tracks	6
Connections	Bus
Construction
Structure type	Ground
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Status	Staffed
Station code	BMH
Fare zone	Myki zone 2
Website	Public Transport Victoria
History
Opened	10 February 1887
Services
Preceding station   V/Line   Following station Melton toward Southern Cross Serviceton line Ballan toward Wendouree, Ararat or Maryborough

Bacchus Marsh railway station is located on the Serviceton line, in Victoria, Australia. It serves the town of Bacchus Marsh, and opened on 10 February 1887, as the temporary terminus of the line from Melbourne. On 4 December 1889, the line was extended to Ballan, which completed the direct Melbourne to Ballarat line.

A number of sidings opposite the station are used to stable trains. It also has an operational 70-foot long (21 m) turntable, that is mainly used for turning steam locomotives on special trains.

The contract for the construction of the station building was awarded in 1889, for £1809/8/11. A 45 lever interlocking frame, in a signal box, was brought into use in 1890. By this time, the station had a main platform, with a dock platform at the eastern end, a main line and crossing loop, turntable, and a number of sidings. The station was originally provided with a 53-foot long (16 m) turntable. In 1957, it was replaced by a 70-foot unit.

In the late 1940s, brown coal, mined at nearby Maddingley, began to be transported in large quantities by rail, with dedicated trains running between Bacchus Marsh and the APM Siding, in the Melbourne suburb of Fairfield. The coal was used to fire the boilers at the Australian Paper Manufacturers paper mill, with 400 tonnes of coal per day transferred in two trains per day. This traffic continued until the late 1970s, when the boilers were converted to natural gas firing.

Control of trains on the single track was controlled with the Electric Staff system until 1967, when the Automatic and Track Control (ATC) system was provided. At the same time, remote control of the signals Bank Box Loop was provided, with the same being done to the track towards Parwan Loop in 1987. Also around 1987, a number of changes to the station layout occurred, including the removal of a number of points, signals and their relevant posts, and the sleeving of a number of levers. Control of the signals at Rockbank were moved into the signal box in 1990.