Cranbourne Railway Station Books

The Cranbourne railway station has a shelf of books next to the Myki payment station for commuters to help themselves to in as they get on the train. The books are donated by the Cranbourne Library and are free for people to take, although it is encouraged that people swap books; leave their old book when picking up a new book.

The bookshelf is hidden away between the Myki payment station and the Myki reader. There is no signage to let people know that the books are there to take. It's very easy to walk by them without even noticing them, even when topping up your Myki. So while the idea does help to promote literature, most commuters from the Cranbourne railway station don't know that they're available. For the people who do happen to notice the books it is not clear whether they can take the books or have to pay for them, which might put a lot of people off from taking a book to read on the way into the city. Especially if they're in a rush to get on the train.

Free books at the train station is a great way to promote reading, however it's not very effective at Cranbourne Railway Station because of the lack of signage explaining how the system works and that the books are free or can be swapped with old books.