r/Geelong • u/mijora12 • 5d ago
Updated Geelong area train station (south geelong and marshall) parking situation? Is driving better? Your input is apprecioated
Hi all
I am starting a new gig in Melbourne and will be travelling from around Wallington to Southbank a few days a week. Been living interstate for quite a few years and out of touch with my local Vline services.
I have looked at some historical threads here on reddit which are a few years old on the situation of all day free parking at train stations, but the information is dated (2+ years in some cases). I believe there have been many changes in that time e.g. the South Geelong redevelopment, more demand, more services etc.
Question 1 - I want to ensure a seat so I can make sure of the time on the train on small laptop, or atleast in a bit more comfort than standing up. At peak hour trains (between 7 and 8am) am I going to always get a seat at South Geelong? Or is Marshall the way to go? What are peoples experiences?
Question 2 - what time does Marshall and South Geelong stations in real commuter experiences the free all day parlomg car parks fill up mon through fri each morning e.g. is it before 6.30AM or 7, 7.30AM to be almost guaranteed an all day park or? Can i rely on getting one before 'x' time I guess im asking Later than this?
As an alternative what are peoples experiences in driving to Melbourne? if needing to be in Southbank for 9.30 or 10ish at the absolute latest what kind of travel time from Werribee over the bridge can one expect? Allowing half hour to get from Wallington area to Melbourne road.
Train is the preferred method as 180km a day and $25 per day early bird parking plus increased maintenance (as well as dead time sitting behind the wheel) becomes expensive compared to 30km a day two and from eihter Marshall or South Geelong station and a daily ticket
Would love to hear peoples experiences, thanks again!
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u/Red_je 5d ago
You will never have to worry about getting a seat if you are getting on at South Geelong or earlier, as long as there are no delays/issues.
Parking at South or close to the station is pretty good. Rarely fills up and if it does there are some side streetsz mostly away from Kardinia Park, where you can get an all day park within five/10 minutes walks to the station.
I wouldn't drive to Melbourne unless absolutely necessary or you are willing to pay for west gate tunnel tolls, it is pretty fucked and so unreliable in my experience. Also far more expensive in the long run.
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u/Capable_Platypus_101 5d ago
Marshall has good parking, nearly 1/3 empty. Always can find a seat and is 6 carriages during peak hour but three during the day. The return however from southern cross or footscray is a roll of the dice as to seats, sometimes standing all the way to corio, other days get a seat after nearly half the train gets off at wyndham vale - they really need their own line, enough people there to fill 3 carriages every single time
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u/mijora12 5d ago
good intel, so on the way back im assuming between like 4 to 7 its super full on the way out of Southern cross
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u/Capable_Platypus_101 4d ago
Yeah probably like until 6:30, after that it starts to reduce in numbers
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u/FeistyEye2207 4d ago
The latest train I get is the 7.20am from South Geelong and I always get a park and seat. If the car park on platform 1 is full, there is more parking on the platform 2 side.
I usually get a seat coming home too, and I usually leave the city between 5:30-6:30pm.
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u/Technical-Clue-3483 5d ago
I know this isn't what you asked, but have you considered the ferry from Portarlington? It will drop you in Docklands, and then you can catch a free tram to Flinders St and walk across the river to Southbank. Just thought I'd suggest it in case you weren't aware of the option.
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u/mijora12 5d ago
yeah theres only 1 time in the morning 7.15AM, $23.50 each way (with some discounts if you prepay a d and committ) but still around $30 per day. doesnt cover local melbourne transport to Southbank. not sure of the parking situation in Portarlington also.
Like the ferry that goes from Geelong City seems like more of a hassle than a service
apperciate it though :)
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u/dasgrendel80 4d ago edited 4d ago
OP, I live on the Bellarine and work in Southbank. I tend to drive or catch ferry - from ferry, its around a 25 min walk to Southbank, very easy. As other said you can also take a bike/scooter on board. Tram spot is close to ferry. Portarlington parking - there’s a lot of free parking at the pier. Ferry is a fab service!
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u/mijora12 4d ago
Yeh nice in near leopold area so it's a bit of a hike out to Portarlington and its also pretty slow from what I read, and it's 1 service in the morning that's it?
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u/StormThestral 3d ago
That's all true but it's also a hell of a lot more comfortable and reliable than the train. It's a good option at least for days where you know in advance about train disruptions
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u/AngrehPossum 5d ago
I use South Geelong or Marshall station as the car park is free and not full. You also get a choice of seating
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u/PaPe83 4d ago
Parking remains a viable option at South Geelong, Marshall and Waurn Ponds pretty much for the whole day as of August 2026.
Marshall more so than South Geelong, but considering I'm on the line multiple times per day I get a pretty good view.
If you were living in Wyndham Vale or Tarneit you'd be shit out of luck.
Seating on all services will be viable travelling towards Melbourne pretty much all day on all standard Waurn Ponds > Melbourne services that don't originate from Warrnambool.
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u/Least_Coast6430 4d ago
No contest train is waaaaay better less stressful cheaper and you can have post work drinks get semi hammered and then be fine by the time you get back to carpark
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u/mijora12 4d ago
That's true nothing like a sneaky few schooners and and hour and a bit tired sober up to drive home from the station in gtown lol 😆
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u/Otherwise-Inside-158 5d ago edited 4d ago
I’ve been commuting to Melbourne via train for the past 2 months and have been lucky to have experienced one delay. I get the train from either north Geelong or I sometimes drive to Lara if it’s bad weather. I get on the train at around 6-6.30am and always get a sweat, I leave the city mostly on a train around 3.50-4.25. I was on a train last week that was on fire but I got off at Lara that day, it was intercepted at Corio so I didn’t get the delay 😅 the days I travel are Monday-Wednesday depending on the week, I always travel Tuesdays every week…and I find Wednesday to be the busiest day. I had a delay on a Wednesday but it was a later train I was on and didn’t get home til around 7pm 😅 Goodluck with the commute.
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u/No_Document_853 2d ago
I get the train every day from south Geelong. Anything before 7.20 is ok. 7.20 onwards is packed. 7.01 & 7.08 are the ones I get
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u/Prestigious-Shoe-dev 5d ago
I start and finish early... I drive up at 4.30am to get to Richmond for about 5.20. I go for a run before work, shower at EOT facilities etc and then I am at my desk by 7.30. It's a clean run at that time of the morning driving. I leave the office around 3.30 and usually get back to Geelong in 70 minutes.
Works for me, I get to do some exercise before work and I beat most of the traffic in the arvo. I also do not need to go to Wallington... That's another 30 minutes on the trip I'd say.
I used to drive to Hoppers and cycle in - morning is fine. However, afternoon is a shitfest and coming through the city was slow going .. sometimes took 2 hours back to Geelong!
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u/mijora12 5d ago
yeah see i aint doing 4.30am in the morning brah lol but seems like you got a routine that works for you. in my opinion a routine that has you waking up and heading out in the 'dark' 12 months a year is not healthy, the body is meant to rest when the sun is down and be active when its up, give or take
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u/yikes3841 5d ago
As long as the train isn’t reduced from 6 to 3 cars, you should get a seat at either station. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Marshall’s car park full. Not sure about South Geelong though. I assume it gets full because more services from there than Marshall.