Chester Hill Station, NSW, Australia

Project Overview

Chester Hill Station, a heritage-listed railway station in New South Wales, Australia, is being upgraded as part of Transport for New South Wales’ Safe Accessible Transport Program, a major initiative focused on delivering safer, more accessible public transport infrastructure.

Delivered through the Transport for Tomorrow (TfT) programme, the project addresses key accessibility challenges, including platform-train interface (PTI) risk, uneven platform surfaces and ageing infrastructure. Dura Composites Australia was selected to design and supply a modular GRP rail platform solution capable of improving accessibility, reducing installation disruption and supporting long-term asset performance.

Serving more than 1,000 passengers daily, Chester Hill Station required modern accessibility improvements to be integrated within an operational railway while maintaining safe passenger movement throughout construction.

Improving Rail Accessibility and Passenger Safety

At Chester Hill, Transport for Tomorrow is delivering a coordinated package of improvements, including:

• Platform regrading and levelling
• Installation of compliant tactile ground surface indicators (TGSIs)
• New lift access and improved station connectivity
• Enhanced wayfinding and passenger facilities
• Improved platform-train interface safety

These upgrades support compliance with accessibility requirements and create a safer, more inclusive environment for passengers, including people with reduced mobility, customers travelling with luggage and those using prams.

Addressing Platform-Train Interface (PTI) Risk

The station’s island platform configuration, comprising two 162-metre-long platforms, presented several engineering and operational challenges:

• Elevated platform-train interface risk
• Uneven platform surfaces affecting accessibility and safety
• Heritage constraints limiting intrusive construction methods
• Restricted possession windows within a live rail environment
• The need to minimise passenger disruption

Traditional reconstruction methods involving excavation, in-situ concrete and individually installed tactiles would have increased programme duration, disruption and future maintenance requirements.

To address these challenges, Dura Composites Australia supplied Dura Platform 40, a lightweight modular GRP platform system engineered to meet the station’s geometry, operational requirements and accessibility standards.

Modular Rail Platform System Enables Rapid Installation

Dura Platform 40 provides a lightweight, adjustable and future-ready rail platform solution capable of delivering:

• Accurate PTI correction to improve passenger safety
• Controlled crossfall gradients
• Precise levelling across uneven substrates
• Fast installation within restricted possession windows
• Future adaptability to evolving rolling stock interfaces

The modular design significantly reduces installation complexity while supporting long-term platform performance and maintainability.

Innovative GRP Tactile Paving Solution

Tactile Ground Surface Indicators (TGSIs) play a critical role in passenger safety, helping visually impaired passengers identify platform edge zones and navigate stations safely.

A key innovation at Chester Hill is the use of Dura Composites’ next-generation GRP tactile system, developed following the successful deployment of Dura Platform 40 at Victoria Street Station in 2019.

Unlike traditional tactile installations, which require individual drilling and fixing of thousands of tactile markers, the Chester Hill solution integrates tactile indicators directly into prefabricated 600mm x 600mm GRP tactile tiles. Project statistics:

• 540 GRP tactile tiles installed
• 77,760 compliant tactile indicators incorporated
• Installation completed without intrusive platform works

As part of the project, tactile indicators were pre-installed by Flagstaff Group, an Australian disability enterprise providing supported employment and training opportunities for people with disabilities.

This partnership ensured consistent quality while delivering meaningful social value alongside critical rail safety infrastructure.

Reduced Maintenance and Whole-Life Costs

The integrated tactile system offers several long-term advantages:

• Individual tactile panels can be replaced as required
• Reduced maintenance disruption
• Spare panels can be held in stock for rapid replacement
• Improved durability within high-traffic rail environments

This approach reduces whole-life maintenance requirements while supporting long-term platform safety and reliability.

Efficient Delivery in a Live Rail Environment

Working in partnership with Gartner Rose, a TAO-accredited contractor with more than 30 years of rail experience, the project demonstrated the benefits of modular construction within an operational railway.

Kilmac Civil delivered the installation across two possession windows, six weeks apart, enabling a phased and controlled delivery programme.

During each possession, all Dura Platform 40 panels, including integrated tactile sections, were installed within the first 36 hours, maximising productivity during restricted access periods. Delivery highlights:

• Delivered during the WE35 possession window
• More than 2,500 working hours completed over a two-day period
• Zero incidents or injuries recorded
• Minimal disruption to passengers and rail operations

The project demonstrates how modular rail platform systems can accelerate installation, reduce programme risk and support efficient coordination with follow-on civils activities.

Proven Performance: From Victoria Street to Chester Hill

The Chester Hill solution builds on the proven success of Dura Platform 40 at Victoria Street Station, where a 45-metre raised platform section was installed to address PTI risk and improve accessibility.

The continued performance of the Victoria Street installation provided confidence in the durability, reliability and long-term effectiveness of the Dura Composites system, directly informing the evolved solution deployed at Chester Hill.

Supporting Sustainable Rail Infrastructure

The lightweight GRP platform system supports Transport for New South Wales’ wider sustainability objectives by:

• Reducing excavation and material volumes
• Minimising on-site waste
• Lowering installation impacts within constrained environments
• Supporting efficient logistics
• Reducing future maintenance interventions

The modular approach aligns with whole-life asset management principles by reducing operational disruption and extending asset performance.

Results and Impact

• The Chester Hill Station upgrade delivered significant operational, accessibility and maintenance benefits:
• Accessibility improvements delivered as part of the Safe Accessible Transport Program
• Two 162m island platforms upgraded using Dura Platform 40
• Improved platform-train interface safety and compliance
• 540 GRP tactile tiles installed incorporating 77,760 compliant tactile indicators
• Reduced disruption through lightweight modular construction
• Faster installation within limited rail possession windows
• Simplified long-term maintenance through a replaceable tactile system
• Zero incidents recorded during delivery
• Reduced excavation and material consumption
• Future-ready rail platform solution adaptable to evolving network requirements

Chester Hill demonstrates how modern platform solutions can address long-standing accessibility and PTI challenges in a controlled and practical way. By combining modular platform design with an evolved tactile system, we’ve supported a solution that improves passenger safety while simplifying installation and long-term maintenance.

Chris Meikle

Business Development Manager at Dura Composites Australia

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