Claremont railway station, Perth

Claremont railway station is a railway station on the Transperth network in Western Australia. It is located on the Fremantle and Airport lines, 9.3 kilometres from Perth station serving the suburb of Claremont.

History
Claremont station opened in 1881 as Butlers Swamp, being renamed Claremont in 1883. In 1886 a new station was constructed 300 metres to the east. The 1886 buildings are now the oldest extant railway station buildings in Perth. It was the only station on the line to be built with a crossing loop.

With the relocation of the Royal Perth Show to the Claremont Showground in 1905, a third platform was added with the station serving the show until Showgrounds station opened in 1954. The station closed on 1 September 1979 along with the rest of the Fremantle line, re-opening on 29 July 1983 when services were restored. The station building was restored at the same time. When the line was electrified in 1991, the station was cut back to one island platform and the original platform abandoned.

After the Town of Claremont's Council Chambers were gutted by fire in 2010, it relocated its administration to the former station master's building. The former goods shed has been converted into a cultural centre and cafe.

Redevelopment
The Airport line was originally planned to terminate at Daglish station, as there was already a turnback siding there. In 2018, it was announced that the terminus had been moved to Claremont station. This required an upgrade of the station to modern accessibility standards and the construction of two turnback sidings west of the station. Claremont station was chosen as it is located halfway along the Fremantle line and is the line's third busiest station, after Fremantle and Subiaco. Perth station does not have the space for trains to turn around and stations beyond Claremont do not have a high enough forecast patronage for the extra services for those stations to be worth purchasing more rolling stock.

In August 2020, John Holland Group was awarded a $36 million contract to undertake the construction works at Claremont station. From 5 February to 5 April 2021, Claremont station was closed and the Fremantle line was partially shut down to complete the upgrade of Claremont station and build the two turnback sidings. The Fremantle line reopened to full service on 6 April, but Claremont station remained closed as workers discovered problems with the station's original construction. Claremont station reopened on 1 June 2021.

Station location
Claremont station is located in the middle of Claremont. The railway's right-of-way lies between two arterial roads: Shenton Road and Gugeri Street. There are two access points to the station from each street: a grade level track crossing through electrically activated gates at the eastern end of the station, and the original pedestrian bridge that provides access by stairs to the platform and to the elevated signal box. Additionally, a pedestrian underpass connects both streets west of the station.

Services
Claremont station is served by the Airport and Fremantle lines on the Transperth network. Services are operated by Transperth Train Operations, a division of the PTA. The Fremantle line runs between Fremantle station and Perth station, continuing past Perth as the Midland line. The Airport line, which commenced regular services on 10 October 2022, goes between High Wycombe station and Claremont station.

Airport line and Fremantle line trains stop at Claremont every 12 minutes each during peak hour for a combined frequency of a train every 6 minutes. Outside peak hour and on weekends and public holidays, each line has a train every 15 minutes for a combined frequency of 7.5 minutes. Late at night, each line has a half-hourly or hourly frequency.

Claremont station saw 579,729 passengers in the 2013–14 financial year.