St Kilda railway line

St Kilda
Overview
Type	Melbourne suburban service
Status	Converted to tram route 96
Former connections	Link to Windsor, Port Melbourne line
Stations	5
Operation
Opened	1857
Closed	31 July 1987
Technical
Line length	4.5 kilometres
Number of tracks	Double track

The St Kilda railway line is a former railway line in Melbourne, Australia.

The line was opened by the Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company in 1857. It ran for 4.5 kilometres from the Melbourne (or City) Terminus (on the site of modern-day Flinders Street Station), crossing the Yarra River via the Sandridge Bridge, to branch off from the Port Melbourne line and finish at St Kilda, after stopping at three stations along the line.

For a short time early in the line's history, there was a short connection provided to the then Brighton line at Windsor, however this link was removed shortly after the direct link was provided to Bay Street from Richmond. The line was taken over by the Government of Victoria in 1878, to become part of Victorian Railways. The line was electrified in the 20th century.

The line was originally to be closed in 1981, and replaced with buses as recommended in the Lonie Report. Plans were sufficiently advanced for Melbourne-Brighton Bus Lines to have taken delivery of six Volgren bodied Volvo B10M buses before it was decided to retain the rail service after much opposition.

Along with the Port Melbourne line, the conversion the line to light rail was first announced on 13 January 1983, by the Victorian state government. Cost estimates at the time was of around $6 million.

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