Melbourne’s free transport zone will get a whole lot bigger this summer. In fact, it will cover the entire state of Victoria.
Victoria is already known for its accessible public transport, with a free tram zone in Melbourne comprising the CBD, Docklands and the Queen Victoria Market. But this summer, the whole public transport network across the state of Victoria will be completely free each and every weekend until 1 February.
This new initiative, dubbed ‘The Summer Start’ will launch in early December, right in time for the opening of Melbourne’s brand new $15 billion Metro Tunnel. After almost a decade of planning and building, the completed tunnel will run between South Yarra and South Kensington and comprise five new underground stations. Its goal is to connect existing suburban train lines (specifically the Sunbury and Cranbourne/Pakenham lines), with the new tunnel acting as a corridor that bypasses the City Loop, making all services more efficient.
Melbourne has had a free tram zone for over a decade. (Image: Matt Zhang/Unsplash)
“The Metro Tunnel will cut congestion and get you to work, uni and home sooner – and it opens in early December," said Premier of Victoria, Jacinta Allan.
When the Metro Tunnel opens, services through the tunnel will run mainly between West Footscray and Westall, with an extended timetable to launch 1 February 2026. Dubbed ‘The Big Switch’, this will see the reconfiguration of services through the tunnel, and will be a major overhaul to Melbourne’s transport, introducing a new timetable across buses, trams, regional and metropolitan trains.
But before things switch up for good, Melburnians and Victorians can enjoy public transport for free – every tram, bus, city train and regional train from the first to last service over the weekend.
“This is our way of saying thanks to everyone for their patience while we built the Metro Tunnel – and to celebrate this huge moment in the history of our state," added Minister for Transport Infrastructure, Gabrielle Williams.
The new Metro Tunnel is set to improve services network-wide. (Image: Nao Takabayashi/Unsplash)
There have been previous short-term experiments with free transport, such as the 12-day fare-free period in Sydney in 2022 amid strike action. The data showed a spike in public transport trips around Sydney and a boost to consumer spending. The hope is that the Victoria’s free transport will be a boon for both passengers and the economy, making its easier for people to get out and about and enjoy what the state has to offer this summer.
“We’re saying thank you Victoria – with free PT every weekend this summer," Jacinta Allan said. “Everyone, everywhere, every weekend, free until Feb 1. The biggest free transport bonanza in Victoria’s history."
Elizabeth Whitehead is a writer obsessed with all things culture; doesn't matter if it's pop culture or cultures of the world. She graduated with a degree in History from the University of Sydney (after dropping out from Maths). Her bylines span AFAR, Lonely Planet, ELLE, Harper's BAZAAR and Refinery 29. Her work for Australian Traveller was shortlisted for single article of the year at the Mumbrella Publishing Awards 2024. She is very lucky in thrifting, very unlucky in UNO.
Board the heritage Grainlander and step back in time for a rail journey discovering silo art, Lake Tyrrell and Victoria’s Mallee region.
One of the best ways to experience Australia is on board a train, and the heritage Grainlader showcases both the beauty of the sprawling Victorian plains and the towering artworks along the Mallee Silo Art Trail.
Below, I take you on a journey to discover what it’s like to spend two nights aboard this iconic locomotive.
What is the Grainlander?
The vintage sleeper train takes patrons on a journey through regional Victoria. (Image: Joanne Karcz)
The Grainlander is a heritage overnight sleeper train in Victoria operated by Slow Rail Journeys, the public tour arm of Seven-O-Seven Operations. It travels through the state’s regional areas, highlights include the Mallee Silo Art Trail (guided off-train tours of the large-scale murals are part of the journey).
Vice President of the volunteer-run not-for-profit organisation, Matt Lucas, says their mission is to “share and restore rail heritage and to promote and increase touring in regional Victoria.”
The journey
The Grainlander departs Melbourne. (Image: Joanne Karcz)
Travelling from Melbourne to Sea Lake, we rumble through Melbourne’s western suburbs and Bacchus Marsh to Ballarat. We pass through towns I’ve never heard of: Wycheproof, Nullawil and Buckrabanyule.
The quick stops are not conducive to alighting from the train, but there’s time for that on the return journey when I alight at Wycheproof for a brisk walk down the main road to see the tracks tracing parallel lines through the town centre. In Maryborough, I stretch my legs and explore the imposing red brick station.
From Ballarat, we trace a path via Geelong to Melbourne along a line that carried miners and freight to the goldfields in the 1800s, thus providing train enthusiasts with a unique experience.
The guest who is on a mission to ride every railway track in Victoria, is thrilled.
Life on board
There’s plenty of giggling as guests in the 1962 Southern Aurora Car inspect our cosy single cabins. I open latches, turn a little handle to wind up the venetian blinds and delight at the art deco bed lamp. The drop-down toilet is sealed. That’s fine by me. I’d rather use the facility at the end of the carriage.
Melbourne’s city lights flash past my window. Although it’s after 10pm, I’m not ready to curl into my tightly made-up bed – which folds up during the day.
Wobbling along the narrow passage to the Club Lounge, I steady myself with my hands. The woman ahead of me says she “feels like a pinball ricocheting off the walls.”
A group of women have settled in, their wine glasses resting on the marbled green coffee table, its boomerang shape echoing that of the curved brown faux leather couches. They invite me to join them. Already my nerves as a solo traveller have evaporated.
Waking early, I sit in bed sipping tea and watch the passing parade of silhouetted trees as the sky lightens.
Gradually the scene comes to life. Early sunlight brightens a field of yellow canola. Sheep gather under a tree, squawking black crows take off and kangaroos bound across green fields. In Wycheproof, a family standing outside their white picket fence wave, their arms forming big arcs.
Some guests remain in their cabins, reading or perhaps reminiscing about travelling in these very carriages as children. The 1923 heritage wooden sleeper is like stepping back in time with leadlight features, carved detail in the wooden panelling and even a “SMOKING” sign. As in the premium twin cabins, the seats fold into bunk beds at night.
Being a social animal, I prefer to chat with other guests in the club or seating lounge.
We eat well. Hearty breakfasts and Sunday lunch are served in the dining car. In keeping with the organisation’s mission to support local businesses, a bakery in Wycheproof prepares Saturday’s picnic lunch and dinner is in the Royal Hotel Sea Lake, run by a co-operative of local farmers and investors.
Exploring the Mallee and the Silo Art Trail
Patchewollock Silo Art by Fintan Magee. (Image: Joanne Karcz)
Stepping off the train at Nulliwal, we view our first silo art. Jimmy, a black and tan kelpie, looks down from the silo wall. As a special treat, we meet Jimmy himself. Retired from farmwork, he revels in our attention.
The train pulls into Sea Lake where a colourful mural depicts a young girl on a swing watching the sky change colour as the sun sets. It’s Saturday. Few shops are open, but I still manage to buy a box of Lake Tyrrell Salt. A fellow traveller discovers a Mother Goose teapot for her collector daughter.
Patchewollock is one of many charming towns to explore on the journey. (Image: Joanne Karcz)
We travel by bus to see silo art in the small communities of Lascelles, Roseberry and Patchewollock. The towering works depict local people and represent the resilience, strength and tenacity of those living in the Mallee.
As the sun sets, the sky at Lake Tyrrell, Victoria’s largest salt lake, itself becomes an artwork. Pastel blues and pinks change to orange and grey as a golden beam spreads across the lake.
Stop for sunset at Lake Tyrrell. (Image: Joanne Karcz)
Details
From $1,045 per person, fares include all meals and tours. The two-night Slow Rail Journey operates most months except in the hot summer months.
Guests include rail enthusiasts, couples, solo travellers and mother/daughter duos. The Grainlander is not accessible for wheelchair users. People with mobility issues may have difficulty stepping on board and walking through the train.
