Armadale and Thornlie railway lines

The Armadale Line runs on the South Western Railway which opened on 2 May 1889. The original stations in 1889 were Perth, Welshpool, Kelmscott and Armadale. Cannington, although operational in 1889, was opened in 1893.[1]

The following stations were opened:[1][2]

• Victoria Park in 1898, rebuilt 230 metres south in 2008
• Woodlupine in 1899 (renamed Queens Park in 1912)
• Goodwood in 1906 (renamed Belmont Park in 1979, closed October 2013)
• Burswood, in 1906 (named Rivervale 1923–1994)
• Mint Street in 1912 (renamed Carlisle in 1919)
• Seaforth on 4 May 1948
• Higham in 1954 (renamed Beckenham in 1969)
• Oats Street in 1954
• Stokely in 1954, closed 15 April 1989.[3]
• Tredale, opened in 1956 as Armadale School siding, renamed Tredale in 1959, closed in 1989.[4]
• Lathlain on 2 May 1959 (closed February 2003)[5]
• Challis on 29 October 1973
• Kingsley on 29 October 1973 (renamed Sherwood 1993)
• Perth Stadium in 2018.

In September 1991, the line commenced electrified operation.[1]

Between 2004 and 2005, Armadale, Carlisle and Gosnells were upgraded to provide better facilities to passengers and provide better access between trains and buses. Lathlain station was closed on 3 February 2003 as part of the project.[5]

Thornlie was opened on 7 August 2005.[1][6][7] The station is built on a 2.9 km spur line of the Armadale Line.

Between 21 March 1993 and 8 August 2005, trains on the Armadale Line continued through Perth to the Joondalup Line. In 2004 new railcars were introduced, which became exclusive to the Joondalup Line. From 2005 until 2012, Armadale Line trains did not run through Perth to the other lines but on 20 August 2012, as part of works relating to the Perth City Link project to sink the Fremantle Line, services from Fremantle connected to the line until the tunnel was opened on 18 July 2013 which saw the Armadale Line terminate in Perth again.

Victoria Park and Kelmscott Stations were upgraded between 2007 and 2008 as part of the Public Transport Authority's 'Building Better Stations' program. Victoria Park station was opened on 20 July 2008.[8] and Kelmscott was opened on 21 November 2008.[9]

As part of the new Perth Stadium project, Belmont Park station closed on 13 October 2013.[10] Perth Stadium station was opened in 2018 to replace it.

As part of the Metronet project, both the Armadale main line and the Thornlie spur line will undergo extensions. The Armadale Line will be extended to the suburb of Byford with a station being built approximately eight kilometres (5 mi) south of the Armadale railway station.[11]

The Thornlie Line will be extended to Cockburn Central railway station on the Mandurah Line. Two new railway stations will be located on this extension, Nicholson Road and Ranford Road. Construction started in 2020.[12]

At the 2021–22 State Budget, it was announced that the Thornlie–Cockburn link had been deferred by 12 months, as a result of Western Australia's skills shortage. This was alongside the deferment of 15 other state government infrastructure projects. The revised opening date is late 2024.[13][14][15]

Below is the annual patronage of Armadale and Thornlie Lines from 2010 to 2011 financial year. Figures are provided as total boardings, which includes all fare-paying boardings and free travel on stations within the free transit zones as well as transfers between stations. The figures for rail replacement and special events services are not included in the total.[16]

During peak hour times on weekdays, some railway stations are almost always bypassed to enable faster commutes. Express trains also run along the Armadale Line on weekdays, and even often on weekends.

Key

Icon	Purpose
	Under construction
§	Special events station

Station	Distance from Perth[17]		Fare zone[18]	Suburbs served	Opened	Connections and notes
	km	mi
Armadale and Thornlie Line
Perth	0.0	0.0	1/FTZ	Perth	1881	Bus transfers at Perth Busport Train transfers to Australind, Fremantle, Joondalup, Mandurah and Midland Lines
McIver	0.7	0.4	1/FTZ	Perth	1989	Train transfers to the Midland Line
Claisebrook	1.3	0.8	1/FTZ	East Perth, Perth	1883	Train transfers to the Midland Line
Perth Stadium§	3.3	2.1	1	Burswood	2018	Open during events at Perth Stadium and on weekends
Burswood	4.6	2.9	1	Burswood	1893
Victoria Park	6.1	3.8	1	Lathlain, Victoria Park	1898
Carlisle	7.4	4.6	1	Carlisle, East Victoria Park	1893
Oats Street	8.1	5.0	1	Carlisle, East Victoria Park	1954	Bus transfers
Welshpool	9.3	5.8	1	Bentley, Welshpool	1899
Queens Park	11.3	7.0	2	Cannington, Queens Park	1899
Cannington	12.2	7.6	2	Cannington, East Cannington	1897	Bus transfers
Beckenham	13.6	8.5	2	Beckenham	1954
Thornlie Line
Thornlie	17.0	10.6	2	Thornlie	2005	Bus transfers
Nicholson Road			2	Canning Vale	2023 (planned)	Bus transfers
Ranford Road			2	Canning Vale	2023 (planned)	Bus transfers
Cockburn Central			3	Cockburn Central	2023 (planned)	Bus transfers
Armadale Line
Kenwick	15.6	9.7	2	Kenwick	1914
Maddington	17.6	10.9	2	Maddington	1896	Bus transfers
Gosnells	20.7	12.9	3	Gosnells	1905	Bus transfers
Seaforth	22.6	14.0	3	Gosnells	1948
Kelmscott	25.8	16.0	3	Kelmscott	1893	Bus transfers
Challis	27.3	17.0	3	Kelmscott	1973
Sherwood	28.6	17.8	3	Armadale	1973
Armadale	30.4	18.9	4	Armadale	1893	Bus transfers Train transfers to Transwa Australind
Byford			4	Byford		Bus transfers

Media related to Armadale railway line at Wikimedia Commons