The Federation Trail is a

shared use path A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is "designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists". Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, bridleways and rail trails. A ...

for

cyclists Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world for pur ...

and

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

s, which mainly follows the heritage-listed Main Outfall Sewer through the western suburbs of

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. There are three bridges spanning across major arterial roads, as well as button-activated traffic light crossings at most other major road-trail intersections. For safety reasons, cyclists are no longer allowed to ride on the metropolitan section of the

Princes Freeway Princes Freeway is a Australian freeway, divided into two sections, both located in Victoria, Australia. The freeway links Melbourne to Geelong in the west, and to Morwell in the east. It continues beyond these extremities as the Princes ...

(or any other urban freeway). The Federation Trail therefore is the preferred alternative route. West of Werribee, where the Federation Trail ends, Geelong-bound cyclists may use the freeway shoulders, as it is then considered a rural freeway. The trail was officially opened on 22 October 2006. In 2010 work started on extending the trail from Millers Road to Williamstown Rd. Completion of stage 1 of the

VicRoads VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government an ...

Truck Action Plan should see the trail finally connected from Williamstown Road to the Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail on Hyde Street. In March 2011, work on the extension stopped completely, due to a change of government and troubles with funding and design of the bridge to Fogarty Avenue. Thirteen hundred metres of concrete path had been built which lay idle until November 2014, when the bridge was completed. In November 2014, VicRoads announced that the trail has been extended from Millers Road to Fogarty Avenue in

Yarraville Yarraville is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's central business district, located within the City of Maribyrnong local government area. Yarraville recorded a population of 15,636 at the . Yarraville i ...

with the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge over the Brooklyn freight line. The next two stages include extending the trail to Williamstown Road and Hyde Street. An interactive map of the trail as well as others in the Melbourne area is available from the 'External Links' section in this article.

Route

Much of the trail follows the historic reservation of the heritage listed Main Outfall Sewer which was built in the 1890s. At that time the sewer was the largest

civil engineering Civil engineering is a regulation and licensure in engineering, professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads ...

project ever undertaken in Victoria. The associated pumping station can be found in the Scienceworks Museum complex. In recent years, th
Greening the Pipeline
initiative is exploring opportunities to transform the Main Outfall Sewer into a parkland to connect communities, and provide a unique space to meet, play and relax. This project is a partnership between

Melbourne Water Melbourne Water is an Australian statutory authority owned by the Victorian State Government, which controls and manages much of the water bodies and supplies in metropolitan Melbourne, the capital of Victoria. Its jurisdiction includes all t ...

Wyndham City Council The City of Wyndham is a local government area in Victoria, Australia in the outer south-western suburbs of Melbourne, within the Melbourne Metropolitan Area, between Melbourne and the regional city of Geelong. It has an area of . The city had a ...

and

City West Water City West Water Corporation was a Government of Victoria retail water corporation that provided drinking water, sewerage, trade waste and recycled water services in the Melbourne central business district, inner and western suburbs. The service a ...

. The project is supported by Greening the West. Snakes may be seen in the Skeleton Creek and

Werribee River The Werribee River is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment that is located on the expansive lowland plain southwest of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The headwaters of a tributary, the Lerderderg River, are north of Ballan near ...

areas during hot weather. Walkers are advised to stay on the path to enjoy the scenery. Landmarks include the Kororoit Creek, a tunnel under the

Western Ring Road The M80 Ring Road (also known simply as the Ring Road or by the names of its constituent parts; the Western Ring Road and the Metropolitan Ring Road) is a partially complete urban freeway ring road around Melbourne, Australia. This article wi ...

freeway,

RAAF Williams RAAF Williams is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base set across two locations, at Point Cook and Laverton, located approximately south-west of the Melbourne central business district in Victoria, Australia. Both establi ...

(Laverton base), Lawrie Emmins Reserve, Skeleton Creek, Werribee Mercy Hospital,

Victoria University Victoria University may refer to: * Victoria University (Australia), a public research university in Melbourne, Australia * Victoria University, Toronto, a constituent college of the federal University of Toronto in Canada * Victoria University of ...

(Werribee campus),

Werribee Park Werribee Park is the estate of a historical building in Werribee, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. It includes Werribee Park Mansion, the Victoria State Rose Garden, formal gardens, the Werribee Park National Equestrian Centre, the Wer ...

Werribee Open Range Zoo Werribee Open Range Zoo is an African themed zoo in Werribee, about south-west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is part of the Zoological Parks and Gardens Board or Zoos Victoria, which also includes Melbourne Zoo, Kyabram Fauna Park, a ...

, and the Werribee River.

Connections

The western terminus of the trail is with its junction with the Werribee River Trail at

Werribee Werribee is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the local government area of the City of Wyndham. Werribee recorded a population of 50,027 at the 2021 census. Werrib ...

where there is access to the

at this point. Near

Hoppers Crossing Hoppers Crossing is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, central business district, located within the City of Wyndham Local government areas of Victoria, local government ar ...

it intersects with the upper section of the Skeleton Creek Trail. The trail intersects the

Western Ring Road Trail __NOTOC__ The M80 Trail (previously known as the Western Ring Road Trail) is a shared-use Bike path, path for cycling, cyclists and pedestrians that Bridge, bridges the northern suburbs and follows the Western Ring Road, Western Ring Road/Metropo ...

west of Millers Road. The eastern terminus of the trail is at Millers Road in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, near

Altona North Altona North is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south-west of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the City of Hobsons Bay Local government areas of Victoria, local government ar ...

. The Hobsons Bay Coastal Trail can be accessed by relatively quiet back streets: At the east end of the trail, cross Fogarty Avenue to the shared path that accesses Mill Avenue and Benbow Street. Go north on Wembley Avenue to Freame Street. Take Drew Street to Austin Crescent East via the Stony Creek footbridge and then Anderson Street and Schild Street to the Bay Trail at Hyde Street. Be cautious on Anderson Street between Williamstown Road and Schild Street. Another option of riding into the

Melbourne City Centre The Melbourne central business district (colloquially known as "the City" or "the CBD", and gazetted simply as Melbourne) is the city centre of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. As of the 2021 census, the CBD had a population of 54,941, and is ...

is to leave the Federation Trail at Geelong Road and ride along the service lanes (and a pedestrian subway under the railway) to connect with one of the numerous paths or streets which go east-west through the Footscray area.

References

External links

*An interactive map of the trail as well as others in the Melbourne area is available here
Walking and Cycling in Melbourne
*
Bikely - Federation Trail mapGreening the Pipeline
{{Bicycle Trails in Melbourne Bike paths in Melbourne

Route

Connections

See also

References

External links