St Kilda Road, Melbourne

Infobox Australian Road
road_name = St Kilda Road
route_

---

photo = St-kilda-road-melbourne.jpg
caption = Looking away from the City towards the Shrine of Remembrance
length = 6
direction = Northwest-Southeast
start =
finish =
est =
through = Southbank, Melbourne 3004
exits = "'Southbank Boulevard / Linlithgow Avenue
Park Street

forms a major spine of the city.

St Kilda Road begins at Princes Bridge (which spans the Yarra River) and connects the Central Business District of Melbourne with the suburb of St Kilda ending at Carlisle Street. The road continues as Brighton Road, which becomes the Nepean Highway, forming a major arterial connecting the bayside suburbs and Mornington Peninsula to the city.

History

In the 1860s, St Kilda was a major bayside resort village. St Kilda Road was a main arterial connecting it with Melbourne, and was planned as a wide European-style boulevard to accommodate horse-drawn traffic and later trams.

From the 1870s, some of Melbourne's wealthiest residents erected grand mansions on significant lots along the street. During the depression of the 1930s, many of these mansions were subdivided into units with extensions to the rear of the buildings, resulting in only some of them remaining today.

In the 1950s, an effort was made to introduce higher-density residential living to the area. Housing Commission of Victoria‎ flats, like the Stanhill Flats were erected along nearby Queens Road. In the 1960s, local planning agencies changed the zoning from residential to commercial, in an effort to create more office space for a growing local financial industry. The area was given the postcode 3004, and was allowed to use the title "Melbourne", effectively extending the central business district area.

In the 1970s, the Victorian government compulsorily acquired much of the land around St Kilda Junction and demolished many of the buildings including the landmark Junction Hotel as part of a street-widening program to accommodate more vehicular traffic. What was once High Street was adjusted to the approximate width of St Kilda Road and renamed to become part of St Kilda Road, effectively extending it to Carlisle Street. An underpass was created under the road to connect Queens Road to Dandenong Road.

Since the 1980s, heritage controls have protected the few surviving mansions and height limits have been introduced to bring uniformity to the street.

Today

Today St Kilda has been absorbed by the metropolis and the road survives as one of the city's major arteries, flanked by a mix of office, residential and mixed use towers.The street is known for its width and leafiness.For most of its length, the wide street consists of a wide shared footpath (lined with Elm trees), street side parking, a bicycle lane, two lanes for motor vehicle traffic, median strip reserve (lined with mature London Plane trees), another two lanes for motor vehicle traffic and a tram line on either side.

Melbourne's trams travel down the centre of the road along the length of the street.

Landmarks

St Kilda Road passes alongside several of Melbourne's famous parks, landmarks and institutions, including:
*Alexandra Gardens
*Victorian Arts Centre
*National Gallery of Victoria
*Victorian College of the Arts
*Victoria Barracks
*Shrine of Remembrance
*Domain Interchange
*Melbourne Grammar School
*Former Chevron Hotel - now an apartment complex.
*Victorian College for the Deaf and Deaf Children Australia's historic bluestone building
*Victorian Institute for the Blind
*Wesley College
*St Kilda Junction

Events

*Southbank Sunday markets - held outside the Arts Centre.
*2006 Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony
*Great Melbourne Bike Ride

Because of its width and central location, the road is used for many marches, including the following regular events:
*Moomba
*ANZAC Day parade - to the Shrine
*Starting point for the 2006 AFL Grand Final Parade

References

* Judith Raphael Buckrich (1996) "Melbourne's Grand Boulevard: the Story of St Kilda Road". Published State Library of Victoria.

External links

* [http://150.theage.com.au/view_bestofarticle.asp?straction=update&inttype=1&intid=704 The Age History of St Kilda Road]
* [http://flickr.com/photos/tags/stkildard Flickr: Photos tagged with stkildard]
* [http://flickr.com/photos/tags/stkildaroad Flickr: Photos tagged with stkildaroad]