Historical information

The Tottenham Yard began as a modest goods yard supporting local industries in Braybrook, Tottenham, and West Footscray, the Sunshine industrial belt and the nearby munitions and explosives factories

Key features of the early yard included a small number of sidings, a goods shed, a basic loading / unloading facilities and a connection to the Tottenham triangle (Sunshine–Footscray–North Melbourne junction).

As the yard expanded with additional siding and larger marshalling areas, there was a requirement to maintain the Ashley Street North – South access route for private and commercial travel. The work involved to solve this problem was to elevate the railway yard and place Ashley Street through a tunnel.

This railway underpass for many years was simply known as the Ashley Street Tunnel.

By the 1970s, the Tottenham Yard had become one of the largest freight yards in Victoria, second only to Dynon.

In the 1982, the level crossing gates at the southern end of tunnel were removed, the tunnel extended southwards and the former Tottenham Railway Station was replaced with an elevated one above the new tunnel extension. During these works the road surface level was lowered to allow for higher trucks to pass through.

At this point of time, the reference to tunnel was replaced with underpass.

During the 1990’s and 2000’s, there was a decline in the use of the Tottenham Yard and many sidings were removed, shorten, converted to storage or left unused.

Today the yard is used for wagon storage, crew changes, light shunting and providing access to the Tottenham triangle and Sunshine corridor.

Significance

These photographs were taken shortly after the tunnel was completed.

Physical description

Digital black & white photographs

Inscriptions & markings

5335.01 - Ashley Street Railway Underpass Looking North Photo 01.jpg
5335.02 - Ashley Street Railway Underpass Looking South Photo 02.jpg