Passengers travelling to the match of the round between rivals Geelong and Hawthorn have been warned to allow an extra hour to travel to the game after a crash on the Geelong line overnight.
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The two trains involved, one a V/Line train and the other a Metro train, are expected to remain at the Altona crash site all day on Saturday while investigators look into the cause of the crash.
Why tonight's Werribee train services are running via the Altona Loop in
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pic.twitter.com/BoMsBB62im — LeadWest (@LeadWestLtd)
August 22, 2014
The Metro train was travelling east towards the city but was stopped, unexpectedly, at the Maidstone Street level crossing near Ajax Road in Altona on Friday. At about 7pm, a second train, travelling from Geelong, rear-ended the suburban train at low speed.
Four people were taken to either the Royal Melbourne or Western hospitals with minor injuries. About 60 people were assessed by Ambulance Victoria paramedics.
There were no passengers on the Geelong train, but the driver and conductor also had minor injuries. Seven people were treated at the scene.
A Public Transport Victoria spokeswoman said the trains were expected to remain at the crash site on Saturday and possibly into Sunday.
The Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator and the Transport Safety Chief Investigator are both investigating at the scene.
V/Line has said trains from Geelong and Marshall will run to and from Werribee but will be replaced by buses between Werribee and Southern Cross stations.
Football fans hoping to get to the MCG game should take special services at 4.18pm and 5.18pm from South Geelong via bus to Southern Cross Station. On arrival, passengers should transfer to Metro trains or to Yarra Trams services to travel to the MCG.
Trains will run between Warrnambool and Geelong, but buses will replace the service between Geelong and Southern Cross Station.
Metro Trains will operate using the Altona loop and are unaffected by the crash.
* Trains on the Lilydale and Belgrave lines were delayed after the theft of signalling cables near to Box Hill railway station overnight on Friday.
The theft was discovered at about 3am and trains delayed by five minutes from about 6.15am.
