Heidelberg station opened on 8 May 1888, at the time when it was the terminating station, on what is now the Hurstbridge line. The current island station design was officially opened on 1 September 1913. At one time, there was a goods yard opposite Platform 1, however this made way for an extension of the commuter car park, but the goods shed still exists. Later on, there were three tracks running through the station - two serviced the island platform, and the third track was the last surviving stabling track. The third track was removed after a period of inactivity. Between 26 January 1942 and 6 February 1942, 14 trains were modified to become ambulance trains. The trains ferried returning wounded World War II servicemen from Melbourne to Heidelberg, where ambulances were waiting to collect them. Heidelberg's role in the war was recognised on 3 November 1995, 50 years after the end of the war, when Vin Heffernan, member for Ivanhoe, erected a plaque at the station to commemorate the event. During 1988, the former No. 4 and No. 5 tracks were abolished, along with a number of disc signal posts. In 1992, the station received an enclosed waiting area and ticket facilities, as part of the ‘Travel Safe’ program of the early 1990s. It was upgraded to a Premium station on 21 June 1996. At 5am on 5 March 1994, after the signals were upgraded to an electronic system, one of the decommissioned mechanical semaphore signals was relocated from the Melbourne side of the station, to the car park opposite Platform 1, for display purposes. Signal No. 4 was first erected for operation at Heidelberg station in 1912. At the 2016-17 Victorian State Budget, $140.2 million was allocated to duplicate the single line between Heidelberg and Rosanna, and includes a second rail tunnel, alongside the existing tunnel. Project was completed in May 2018
Platforms and services
Heidelberg has one island platform with two faces. It is serviced by Metro Trains' Hurstbridge line services. Platform 1:
Hurstbridge line: all stations and limited stops services to Flinders Street
Platform 2:
Hurstbridge line: all stations and limited stops services to Eltham, Hurstbridge, Greensborough and Macleod
