Intelligence briefs show Victoria Police is concerned "communal weapons" are being stored by young people in public places across Melbourne.
The force estimates it seized more than 15,000 machetes, zombie knives and other knives in Victoria last year.
Labor and the Coalition have both pledged to expand police stop-and-search powers to combat knife crime if elected at the state election in November.
Teenagers trying to skirt Victoria's machete ban are planning attacks using communal blades secretly stashed at some of the state's busiest train stations, police believe.
Victoria Police intelligence briefs got by the ABC show police are concerned the ban on owning machetes, introduced a year ago, has fuelled the trend among underage offenders.
The police reports, got through Freedom of Information laws, flagged a rise in "communal weapons storage" as a result at public transport precincts across Melbourne, which have seen a spate of violent stabbings, bashings and carjackings in the past two years.
Australian Catholic University criminologist Nathan Ryan said young people were seeking to reduce the risk of being caught carrying illegal weapons.
Shadow Police Minister Brad Battin said knife crime was already "out of control" and that minors hiding weapons in public places put the community at greater risk.
Premier Ben Carroll this week announced Labor will give police powers to stop and search anyone in public if re-elected.
Crimes committed at train stations jumped from just under 8,000 offences in 2017 to 12,579 in the year to June 2026, according to Crime Statistics Agency data.