On December 8, 2024, WA Premier Roger Cook, flanked by Deputy Premier and Transport Minster Rita Saffioti and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, took to an ad hoc stage in Perth’s north-eastern suburbs and told the crowd “days like these don’t come around all that often.”
“We are celebrating one of the most extraordinary moments in the development of transport infrastructure in Western Australia.”
After two years of construction, five years of planning, nine years of government backflips, and 30 years after it was first proposed, the 25,000 residents of Ellenbrook finally got their train line.
The signature piece of the McGowan and Cook Government’s flagship Metronet project, the Ellenbrook Line consists of 21 kilometres of new track, and five new stations at Ellenbrook, Whiteman Park, Ballajura, Noranda, and Morley.
It’s been promised to slash commuting times for passengers, reduce traffic congestion, and open up economic opportunities across Perth’s north-eastern suburbs.
The project cost $1.65 billion, up from a 2017 estimate of $863 million, and has also proven politically fruitful for both WA and federal Labor.
So, four months in to its life, how is the Ellenbrook Line tracking?
A personal case study
For Lucy Hammond, a 22-year-old nursing student who uses the Transperth network regularly, the Ellenbrook Line has proven beneficial.
She says it’s never been easier to connect with friends in the north-eastern suburbs, and expanded bus services that connect directly to the train line has made travel to work and university simpler.
“It has cut my commute times down, probably about 10 or 15 minutes.”
Ms Hammond’s one critique was that the longer platforms at the new stations, future-proofed to serve six-car trains, but currently only serving three-car trains, make for a slightly unpredictable boarding experience.
“It just feels weird waiting in a certain part of the platform, and then, oh, the train’s over there!”
Nonetheless, she’s happy the line finally exists.
Gauging performance
Public and political sentiment has been largely positive, but initial statistics paint a mixed picture of the Ellenbrook Line’s early success.
A 2020 Project Definition Plan projected the line would average 11,700 weekday boardings on opening, growing to 18,000 by 2031.
When questioned, a spokesperson for Western Australia’s Public Transport Authority reported just 5,500 average weekday boardings, less than half of the 2020 projection.
The PTA assured ridership numbers will increase, as the Ellenbrook area continues to grow and more people embrace public transport.
Another statistical blight is the number of service delays and track closures. Since its opening, there’s been at least 25 instances of Ellenbrook Line services being disrupted.
The PTA said it’s important to understand disruptions can occur on any train line, and both internal and external factors — human, mechanical, and environmental — can affect services.
“When things like this happen, the experience and expertise of our train control team comes to the fore — they are skilled at juggling trains and drivers to minimise the effect of stoppages on our patrons.”
Teething problems
Alongside conflicting pictures of the Ellenbrook Line’s success, there’s also been a few operational challenges.
In awkward circumstances, trains from Ellenbrook terminate at platform six at Perth Station, a platform also serviced by Midland and Airport trains.
This is despite Ellenbrook trains continuing, without passengers, five kilometres west to Daglish Station to use existing turnback infrastructure.
Terminating Ellenbrook trains have, and may still, cause delays for other trains stopping at platform six.
The PTA’s spokesperson said upgrades are underway at Daglish to support higher frequency services.
Another issue is parking, particularly at Ellenbrook Station with its 500 parking bays.
That’s half of other newer terminus stations like Yanchep (900 bays) and High Wycombe (1100).
When questioned on expanding parking at Ellenbrook, the PTA advised no plans were in place, and that Whiteman Park Station, a 10-minute drive from Ellenbrook, offers 900 bays with ample capacity most days.
There’s also been issues caused by changes to bus services, one particularly confusing change being the removal of the 311 service between Bullsbrook and Midland.
When asked about the 311’s removal, the PTA’s spokesperson said bus changes are inevitable when a new train line opens, and that community feedback was sought.
“There are now an additional 88 new buses on the network, adding a combined five million bus service kilometres every year. Unfortunately, it is impossible to cater to every user’s individual needs.”
Tracking to the future
Despite being in full operation, it seems the Ellenbrook Line is far from complete.
Plans are in place for the addition of a station at Bennett Springs, which will commence once the area surrounding the proposed station has further developed.
The aforementioned 2020 Project Definition Plan also mentions a future intermodal terminal in Bullsbrook, 13 kilometres north of Ellenbrook.
Despite projections by consultancy firm Urbis saying Bullsbrook could grow by almost 80,000 people by 2051, the PTA’s spokesperson said there’s currently no plans to extend the Ellenbrook Line.
Informal discussions have also surfaced regarding an Ellenbrook-Joondalup rail link. The PTA offered no comment.
“Planning for any type of future rail infrastructure undergoes detailed development and evaluation long before any investment decision or delivery, and is carefully considered against community needs and other high-priority public transport investments across the network.”
Mitchell Corps
Third-year Broadcasting and Digital Journalism student at Edith Cowan University. Additional studies in politics and screen production. Cinephile, techie, sports junkie, politics nerd.
