Mrs VK3PZ and I went down and had a look. The open day was very popular
(thousands of people came and there were very long queues - even at the
end of the day) and it was pleasing to see that Rotary had tins
overflowing with donations for the Salvation Army. The project is well
underway. the big ditch has been dug out and a station with central
platform is about half complete. About half the tunnel has been
excavated and covered but the major part of the work (under Boronia
road) is still underway.
One of the notable architectural aspects is the use of a blue glazed
brick on some walls. There is a small structure (like a small wall)
built out of this brick behind Mcdonalds but its purpose remains a
mystery. Why was it built?
It will be interesting to see whether trains will keep running when the
use of the old station is stopped and the new station commences to be
used. It could be done using single line working ie a single line spur
off the old line would be connected at either end and then trains in
both direction would use this one track whilst the second track is being
built and the old line is demolished.
Then again they may just shut the line down for several weeks.
cheers peter