Route 5
D1 class tram at The Arts Centre in November 2007
Overview
System	Melbourne
Operator	Yarra Trams
Depot	Malvern
Vehicle	Z3 class D1 class
Began service	21 November 1929
Route
Start	Melbourne University
Via	Swanston Street St Kilda Road Dandenong Road Malvern East
End	Malvern
Length	12.6 kilometres
Timetable	Route 5 timetable
Map	Route 5 map
Route map {{{map}}} ← Route 3/3a  {{{system_nav}}}  Route 6 →

Melbourne tram route 5 is operated by Yarra Trams on the Melbourne tram network from Melbourne University to Malvern. The 12.6-kilometre (7.8 mi) route is operated out of Malvern depot with Z and D1 class trams.

History

Route 5 was allocated to the line between Malvern (Burke Road) and City (Swanston Street) on 21 November 1929, the same day that numbers were allocated to the rest of the Swanston Street trams. Trams traditionally terminated at the Victoria Street terminus, but following an accident in 1991, trams instead terminated at the Queensberry Street crossover. Due to congestion during peak hours at the crossover, some trams continued north to Melbourne University. Finally on 17 January 1996, a permanent shunt was built at Melbourne University. From then on, route 5 trams were altered run full-time to Melbourne University.^[1]

The origins of route 5 lie in separate tram lines. The section of track between Queensberry Street (Stop 4) and St Kilda Junction (Stop 30) is the oldest section of this route, dating back to the Brighton Road cable tram which opened on 11 October 1888 by the Melbourne Tramway & Omnibus Company. This cable tram line was electrified in stages by the Melbourne & Metropolitan Tramways Board (MMTB). The section between Domain Interchange (Stop 20) and St Kilda Junction (Stop 30) was electrified on 27 December 1925. The section between Queensberry Street and City Road (near Stop 14) was electrified on the same day. The line between City Road and Domain Interchange was electrified on 24 January 1926. The section between St Kilda Junction and Chapel Street (Stop 32) also dates back to the cable era, as the Windsor to St Kilda Esplanade cable tramway which opened on 17 October 1891. This section was one of the first cable trams to be converted to electric traction on 27 December 1925.^[1]

The line east of Hawthorn Road (Stop 45) until the Malvern (Burke Road) terminus was one of the original lines constructed by the Prahran & Malvern Tramways Trust (PMTT), which opened on 30 May 1910. The PMTT also built the section between the Sandringham railway line (near Stop 33) and Wattletree Road (Stop 40), opening on 16 December 1911. This line was extended to Chapel Street (Stop 32) on 31 March 1912.

On 24 June 1928, the MMTB constructed a small section of track between Wattletree Road and Glenferrie Road, giving a more direct route from Burke Road to St Kilda Junction.^[2]

As part of the St Kilda Junction separation works, the Wellington Street section was abandoned for a new section of track along the newly built Queens Way on 4 November 1968.^[3]

During the 2006 Commonwealth Games, the route was merged with route 55 to West Coburg at Domain Interchange to alleviate congestion along St Kilda Road.^[4][5]

Until 29 October 2023, the entire route only operated until 19:00, after which the route ran shuttle between Dandenong Road and Malvern. From 30 October 2023, route 5 was converted to full day operations along the entire route.^[6]

Route

Route 5 operates from Melbourne University travelling south through the CBD on Swanston Street via Melbourne Central station and Flinders Street stations. After crossing the Yarra River it continues south along St Kilda Road to St Kilda Junction, where it descends to Queens Way, Windsor and heads east, at Chapel Street, Queens Way becomes Dandenong Road. It continues east passing through Prahran, Armadale, Malvern and Malvern East to its terminus at Burke Road.

Operation

Timetable of route 5 at the Flinders Street station tram stop, instructing passengers to take route 64 and connect with route 5 services after 19:00

B-class tram on route 64 displaying the 64/5 route number and "& Malvern" in an evening of October 2023

Route 5 is operated out of Malvern depot with Z and D1 class trams.^[7][8][9] It is occasionally operated by D2 class trams.

Until 29 October 2023, from 19:00 the service only operated between Dandenong Road / Wattletree Road and Malvern, with services timetabled to connect with route 64 services, displayed as Route 64/5.

Since 30 October 2023, the evening operations swapped with route 64, with route 5 running low-floor trams along the entire route throughout the evening, and route 64 running shuttle between Dandenong Road / Wattle Tree Road and East Brighton after 18:30.^[6]

Route map

Melbourne Tram Route 5
Melbourne University - Malvern via City, Windsor & Armadale Free tram zone covers stops 8 to 13, fare zone 1 applies from stop 1 to 7, 14 to 52
Suburb Street Stop No. Melbourne University Connections continues as Tram 1 & 6 towards East Coburg & Moreland Carlton Swanston Street 1 Melbourne University 1, 3, 6, 16 64, 67, 72 ; 401, 402 403, 546 3 Lincoln Square 4 Queensberry Street Victoria Street No Service Melbourne CBD Swanston Street 7 RMIT University La Trobe Street Tram 30, City Circle Exhibition Street   Harbour Esplanade Melbourne Central station ●●●●●●●●●●●●●● 8 Melbourne Central station 30, City Circle 10 Bourke Street Mall 86, 96; Lonsdale Street buses Bourke Street Tram 86, 96 Melbourne Museum   Southern Cross station Collins Street Tram 11, 12, 48, 109 St Vincent's Plaza   Southern Cross station 11 Collins Street 11, 12, 48, 109 Flinders Street Tram 70, 75, City Circle Russell Street   Docklands Flinders Street station ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● 13 Flinders Street station 70, 75, City Circle Southbank St Kilda Road 14 Arts Precinct 1; 216, 219 220 Southbank Boulevard Tram 1     South Melbourne Beach 17 Grant Street - Police Memorial 19 Shrine of Remembrance Park Street Tram 58     West Coburg Melbourne St Kilda Road 20 Anzac Station 58 Domain Road No Service (Temporary Closure) 21 Bowen Crescent 22 Toorak Road 58 Toorak Road Tram 58 Toorak   23 Arthur Street 24 Leopold Street 25 Commercial Road 72; 216, 219, 220 Commercial Road Tram 72 Camberwell   26 Moubray Street 27 High Street High Street Tram 6 Glen Iris   29 Union Street St Kilda St Kilda Road 30 St Kilda Junction 3, 16, 67 St Kilda Road Tram 3, 16, 67     Balaclava Junction/Carnegie Windsor Upton Road 31 Queens Way   Dandenong Road 32 Chapel Street 78 Windsor station ● Chapel Street Tram 78 North Richmond   Balaclava 33 Hornby Street 34 The Avenue 35 Williams Road Prahran Dandenong Road 36 Closeburn Avenue 37 Lansdowne Road Armadale Dandenong Road 38 Orrong Road 40 Wattletree Road 64 Dandenong Road Tram 64     Brighton East   Wattletree Road 41 Armadale Street 42 Kooyong Road 43 Egerton Road 44 Duncraig Avenue Malvern Wattletree Road 45 Glenferrie Road 16 Glenferrie Road Tram 16 Kew   Melbourne University Malvern station ●●● 46 Nicholls Street 47 Cabrini Hospital 48 Dixon Street Malvern East Wattletree Road 49 Tooranga Road 50 Vincent Road 51 Erica Avenue 52 Burke Road Suburb Street Stop No. Malvern Connections

References

External links

Media related to Melbourne tram route 5 at Wikimedia Commons