Broken lifts, vandalised toilets and a mysterious odour: Something smells at Southern Cross

A nauseating stench has forced V/Line to indefinitely shut a booking office at Southern Cross Station, in the latest example of poor amenity affecting travellers and workers at the privately run transit hub.

It comes as a trove of documents released to this masthead detail persistent maintenance, cleanliness and air quality issues at the station, and the often slow response from its owner, Civic Nexus.

V/Line shut its booking office at the station’s southern end on February 25 in response to reports of a “persistent foul odour, likely caused by an airborne gas”, according to a safety update circulated by the Rail Tram and Bus Union.

The office remains closed. An investigation found there was “no risk to passengers or workers” and rectification works were under way, a transport department spokesperson said, while declining to reveal the source of the smell.

Southern Cross is the second-busiest station in Melbourne after Flinders Street, with almost 20 million Metro and V/Line passengers a year, as well as the airport Skybus and coach services.

It was privatised in 2002, when Victoria awarded superannuation investment fund IFM Investors a $309 million contract to redevelop and run the former Spencer Street Station until 2036, through its holding company Civic Nexus.

Documents released to this masthead via a freedom of information request highlight ongoing customer complaints about built-up diesel fumes from idling V/Line trains, broken lifts and escalators, and filthy platforms.

A monthly performance report shows that in May 2024, Civic Nexus received four customer complaints about diesel fumes, 21 complaints about uncleanliness – including the absence of bins – and 24 complaints about broken lifts and escalators. It also received 24 complaints about its luggage storage lockers.

Emails between the transport department and Civic Nexus show that the Bourke Street end lift on platform 11 was out of service for “a few months” in mid-2024, forcing passengers with restricted mobility to take a long detour via the Collins Street exit.

“The lift has essentially hit end of life requiring either a major overhaul or replacement,” a transport department official wrote in an email.

Civic Nexus had not planned to overhaul the lift until the following year, meaning it was up to the department to “issue a request for Civic Nexus … to prepare costs and project estimates for overhaul/replacement options”.

“Once we issue a letter, there is around 4 months lead time for lift equipment, plus 1 month allowance for installation & testing,” the email said.

It took two months to fix an accessible toilet when it was extensively vandalised in July 2024.

Civic Nexus said it could not obtain a spare part for the automatic door closer, but an accessible unisex toilet was available nearby.

Other correspondence in response to complaints about dirty lifts shows Civic Nexus cleaned them daily with a sweep, mop and disinfectant “if needed”.

Lifts were occasionally deep cleaned but “we don’t pressure clean each one every week”, Civic Nexus said, but rather on a multi-week rotation. Each platform was pressure washed once every four months, the emails show.

Civic Nexus finally reinstalled bins on its 16 platforms in June last year, more than 10 years after they were replaced at other CBD train stations following their temporary removal due to terrorism concerns.

The documents show the Transport Department wrote to Civic Nexus in October 2021, requesting it install the new “safer-by-design” bins. However, it then took almost four years for the bins to be installed.

Public Transport Users Association spokesman Daniel Bowen said the litany of complaints at Southern Cross highlighted the danger of putting an important gateway in private hands.

“The government can request that upgrades happen, but they don’t, or they’re delayed for years,” Bowen said. “They should really be pushing as hard as they can to ensure better outcomes for passengers.”

The build up of carcinogenic diesel fumes under the station’s arched roof has been a concern for railways workers and their union.

Minutes from an air quality working group included in the documents show that in April 2024 Civic Nexus proposed removing glass panels in the roof to improve ventilation. That plan has not yet been implemented.

The department said monitoring showed the station was compliant with current air quality safety standards as well as more stringent standards that will come into effect in December.

Work to gradually upgrade platform escalators started in September 2025 and is expected to take until August this year.

A Transport Department spokesperson said V/Line customers could buy tickets from a temporary office while the Collins Street booking office was closed, or from its office near Skybus.

The spokesperson said the department, Civic Nexus and transport operators were trying to improve air quality by reducing train and bus idling times.

A Civic Nexus spokesperson said it continually assessed the station’s amenity to ensure it met customers’ expectations.

“When issues are brought to our attention, we work proactively with our contractors and partners … to address these promptly,” the spokesperson said.

Opposition public transport spokesman Matthew Guy said Southern Cross should not be allowed to fall into disrepair.

“A private-public partnership is fine, so long as both sides meet their agreed purchase and maintenance requirements. These examples show that’s clearly not the case,” he said.

A spokesperson for Public Transport Minister Gabrielle Williams said Civic Nexus was required to meet performance standards “and there are penalties if they are not met”.

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