Permits and Station Access

General guidance

• Use for activities with a community or educational purpose.
• We only accept requests from not-for-profit organisations, registered charities, social enterprises, community groups and government agencies.
• We do not facilitate access for individuals.
• Due to the volume of activity at city stations, weekday access is limited.
• Given Metro stations are busy places recurring access and requests for multi-day access is strictly limited.

All community access requests require a permit application and must meet two of Metro’s community focus areas:

• Safety – Building community confidence about rail safety to assist people travel safely on our network.
• Mental health – Supporting awareness, education and caring initiatives related to mental health to improve the wellbeing of Melbournians.
• Inclusion – Improving the experience of passengers so everyone who uses our network has the same great experience.
• Involvement – Supporting initiatives that bring communities together to create and enhance the travelling experience for Metro passengers.

Access fees

Community access at city stations and major interchange stations (Footscray, North Melbourne, Richmond, South Yarra, Caulfield) can be accessed free of charge on the 1st and 3rd Monday of each month. A fee may be charged at other times.

Community access for non-city stations is free of charge on all days.

See end of page for details on access fees.

Apply for a Community Permit.

General guidance

• Use for activities that involve commerce, profit-making, or business operations.
• Filming/photography activities where the purpose/outcome is used commercially by media or production companies.
• Always a Tier 2 activity, with applications to be submitted a minimum 30 days before the date of the proposed activity.

Apply for a Commercial Permit.

Management of third party projects, including facilitation of access requests with a construction related intent, which have the potential to interface with Metro network.

Apply for a Metro Site Access Permit.

A Tier 1 activity must be submitted a minimum of 10 business days before the date of the proposed activity.

Tier 1 activity features:

• Less than 5 participants
• Localised impact and short duration (maximum one activity, one station, one day duration)
• No or low impact to stations, staff, operations, passengers and other members of the public
• Equipment does not exceed one handheld camera

A Tier 2 activity must be submitted a minimum of 30 business days before the date of the proposed activity.

Tier 2 activity features:

• Film/photography crew size up to 10
• Community activity exceeding 5 participants
• Request involves access on or near a platform, or at peak times
• Equipment exceeds one handheld camera

You must have a current policy of insurance, providing cover for death and personal injury to any person and loss of, or damage to, any property. Your public liability insurance must be for at least $20,000,000. This must be presented on application.

While weekday activity is permitted, peak hour restrictions will apply, as below, unless essential or agreed by Metro otherwise.

• Monday to Friday access: 10:00-15:30 and 20:00-00:00
• Weekend access: generally, any time of day (depending on location and other activity e.g.: special events or maintenance)

Applicants are reminded that unless they have exclusive use of an area, approved in advance, normal operational activities will continue. This will include announcements over the PA system, passenger movements and cleaning activity. Activities will not be paused to accommodate filming.

We cannot permit activity on trains due to safety reasons.

Please see the Advertising at Metro page.

In accordance with Metro regulations, the following are not allowed to be filmed or photographed within our station precincts with no exceptions:

• Vandalism or graffiti
• Assaults on passengers or staff
• Suicides
• Fare evasion or ticket touting
• Use of firearms or weapons
• Drinking or carrying open containers of alcohol
• Misuse of escalators or property
• Unlicensed busking
• Begging
• Smoking or the use of illegal drugs
• Behaving in an overtly sexual or indecent manner (including nudity)
• Direct threats (including terrorist) to Metro, its staff or passengers
• Anything that may negatively affect the Metro brand, the brands of associated entities or government brands
• Anything associated with commercial outcomes for private interest.

We will refuse permit applications which include activities which breach or contradict Metro regulations or may impact on the public perceptions of safe behaviours on the rail network.
Under no circumstances are photos to be taken of Metro staff without their permission.

The display of posters at stations is not permitted unless associated with an approved Metro or transport related marketing campaign or initiative. Any posters displayed without permission will be taken down.

If your application includes a request to remove posters or signage from station poster cases or walls, Metro must approve this in advance and a fee may be charged for removal and restoration. Essential operational signage e.g. emergency signage, must not be removed in any circumstances.

All request for Southern Cross are managed via Southern Cross Station directly. Contact information can be found here 

People ‘passing through’ our stations who want to take photographs or film for their own personal use can do so, on the basis that it will involve very minimal impact to our stations, staff and operations.

The following points must be followed:

• images clearly identifying or promoting the Metro brand/logos must not be published or broadcast without our permission ahead of time
• additional camera equipment (specifically flash and tripods) are not used
• under no circumstances are photos to be taken of Metro staff without their permission
• people filming or taking photographs for their own purposes are responsible for ensuring they comply with any lawful requirements of privacy and data protection legislation.

We protect the Metro brand and therefore prohibit unauthorised use of the Metro logo and associated visual identity. Any use of the Metro brands must be approved by Metro prior to publishing and comply with relevant copyright legislation.

You will need to have your script or layout approved by Metro before a permit is granted. For feature films, scene scripts and/or storyboards are acceptable.

Permits will generally not be considered if a script or layout breaches or contradicts Metro bylaws, marketing campaigns or contains any of our filming restrictions.

Metro can refuse a permit application without providing specific reasons. However, we will normally offer advice on how you can bring your script or layout into line with restrictions.

If your application involves an advertising campaign, please contact Metro’s advertising contractor Ooh Media for information. See the Advertising at Metro page for more information.

Any filming and photography by students under the age of 18, requires supervision. Proof of enrolment at a registered education institution and the certificate of insurance must be provided on application.

For safety reasons we ask film crews to use battery-operated equipment.

The use of petrol or diesel generators is prohibited.

The use of Metro power supply is prohibited.

We do not permit flash photography or additional lighting unless you are using an exclusive station.

Tripods are only authorised at the discretion of operational staff and are not allowed on station platforms or near escalators for safety reasons.

It is not possible in any circumstances to film inside a driver’s cab.

With sufficient advance notice, it may be possible to film between the hours of 01:00-04:00 when stations are closed to the public, and if there are no planned works at the location you want to use.

This does not apply to Friday or Saturday nights.

Please note that filming during these hours will require additional fees/charges as specific staffing and other resources are required as well as a more detailed risk assessment. Fees supplied on request.

Most station locations and their immediate precincts are available for a filming Permit, under the specified conditions.

Due to the large number of major works projects on our network, some locations may not be available for extended periods as works take place. You can keep up to date with upcoming planned works here https://www.metrotrains.com.au/planned-works/

The following stations are subject to a case-by-case review:

• Flinders Street
• Melbourne Central
• Parliament
• Flagstaff
• Richmond
• South Yarra
• Caulfield
• Footscray

All requests for filming at Southern Cross Station are managed via Southern Cross Station directly: https://southerncrossstation.com.au/contact/

We have two stations which may be accessed exclusively when not in use:

• Flemington Station
• Showgrounds Station

Specialised staff may be required; for example Metro electricians or a train driver, which are not included as standard and will incur a fee.

A train can be hired for exclusive use, for a fee. This requires a minimum of 40 working days’ notice. Exclusive use of a train can only be used in conjunction with Flemington or Showgrounds Stations when these stations are not in public use. Due to operational requirements the train type cannot be guaranteed and is subject to the discretion of Metro.

The fee for exclusive use of a train will be determined following the application being made.