Removal of three more dangerous and congested level crossings on the Frankston line, that are estimated to hold up more than 38,000 vehicles every day, is now underway with early works beginning at Park Road and Charman Road in Cheltenham and Balcombe road in Mentone.

The project is set to take around 18 months with the finish date in mid-2020, as major construction to lower new rail into trenches, add a third rail to allow for more trains to run more frequently and the removal of three level crossings to be commenced all at once in a construction blitz next year.  This will  see the Frankston line closed for two months in the hope of minimizing disruption to commuters.

As well as the level crossing removals, new stations at Cheltenham and Mentone will be built.  The new design will be more community focused, with walking/cycling tracks, new open spaces, better lighting, more parking spaces and better accessibility for all included in the final plan.  The new stations will also be incorporating the much-loved current heritage listed stations and gardens into the design.

The contract for the works has been awarded to the Lendlease, Acciona Coleman Rail, WSP and Metro Trains alliance, who have already successfully completed the Seaford level crossing removal and are currently in the process of removing three more level crossings at Carrum.

This $536 million package of works are part of a massive $3 billion investment on the Frankston line which includes the removal of 18 level crossings, with five already removed, and building 11 new stations.

BDS Civil and Construction are looking forward to commencing t his project next month.