Balaclava Junction is the only extant grand union in the Southern Hemisphere, a junction where trams can go in all directions from all directions. Two other grand unions formerly existed in the Southern Hemisphere in Auckland, New Zealand on Queen Street, at its intersections with Customs and Wellesley Streets, but Auckland's tram network closed in 1956.
Balaclava Junction is also a tram traffic accident blackspot mainly because it is a grand union, but changes to the light sequence and road markings have improved the safety of the intersection for both cars and trams alike. The junction is located on the intersection of Balaclava Road and Hawthorn Road in Caulfield North which is a suburb of Melbourne, Australia, in the state of Victoria. It is in the Local Government Area of the City of Glen Eira. Its postcode is 3161. It connects Caulfield Racecourse, Caulfield railway station and the Caulfield campus of Monash University as well as places further afield.
Famous quotes containing the word junction:
“In order to get to East Russet you take the Vermont Central as far as Twitchell’s Falls and change there for Torpid River Junction, where a spur line takes you right into Gormley. At Gormley you are met by a buckboard which takes you back to Torpid River Junction again.”
—Robert Benchley (1889–1945)