In April 1993, the Richard Court Liberal Party (conservative) State Government announced that the workshops would be eventually closed.

Development of the Woodbridge Lakes housing estate near the site prompted environmental studies of the heavy metals and sludge within the dam.

The Midland Redevelopment Authority (MRA) appears to have removed the workshops from any significant working rail heritage status.

[citation needed] Until late 2007 the Australian Railway Historical Society had performed restoration work and housed part of their collection in the workshops.

South Spur Rail Services used to occupy several roads, in part due to their association with the Spirit of the West restaurant train that was stabled in the workshops; they have since moved to an area closer to Bellevue and the Roe Highway overpass.

The section of the workshop area to the east of the main railway buildings has been demolished to make way for projects which the Midland Redevelopment Authority has earmarked for further development.

[6] George Alfred Julius, inventor of the automatic totalisator, was a premium apprentice here in the early years of the 20th century, before moving to Sydney and co-founding his own engineering partnership.