Andrews government locks in eastern route for Suburban Rail Loop

The locations of six new stations in the eastern section of the Suburban Rail Loop have been announced, which will carry 400,000 passengers per day. See where the new stops will be built.

The route for the eastern section of the $50 billion Suburban Rail Loop has been locked in by the Andrews Government, with six new stations to be built.

New underground stations will be positioned along the line at Monash University in Clayton and in Burwood, while four interchange stations are planned at Cheltenham, Clayton, Glen Waverley and Box Hill.

Premier Daniel Andrews has also announced that a new Suburban Rail Loop Authority will start work this week to design the ambitious project so that construction can begin in 2022.

The authority, to be headed by Nick Koa, will immediately begin consultation with councils, universities and other key stakeholders to decide on the exact locations for the new stations in these areas.

At this stage, it is unclear how many properties will have to be acquired to construct the new tunnel and stations, but Mr Andrews said the government would look to “minimise the amount of impact on local residents”.

The Suburban Rail Loop will stop at Monash University in Clayton and in Burwood, while four interchange stations are planned at Cheltenham, Clayton, Glen Waverley and Box Hill. Picture: Supplied

The loop, which will circle around the CBD and connect to every suburban railway line, is expected to take several decades to build and will eventually carry 400,000 passengers a day, according to the government’s modelling.

Mr Andrews announced the preferred route at Monash University in Clayton this morning, where he was also asked about the progress of the state and federal government’s commitment to a rail link to Monash’s other Caulfield campus.

Mr Andrews said planning work was continuing on that project — to which the federal government promised $475 million early last year — but indicated that the Suburban Rail Loop had altered the design process.

He said he had discussed it several times with Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently, adding: “You can’t proceed with that project and ignore the fact that Suburban Rail Loop is being built as well. The two need to work together well.”

“I’m not being critical of that project in any way but … since that commitment our Suburban Rail Loop commitment has been made and you have to look at the two of them in the context,” Mr Andrews said.

Here’s the state government’s view of Victoria’s future rail network. ⁦@theheraldsun⁩ #springst pic.twitter.com/DbBPuNuaPJ

— Tom Minear (@tminear) September 3, 2019

The state government is also planning for the airport rail link to form part of the Suburban Rail Loop, fuelling speculation that commuters may have to change trains at a new transport hub in Sunshine between Tullamarine and the CBD.

Mr Andrews said the airport rail project had two “distinct elements” — from the airport to Sunshine, and Sunshine to the city — and that there were “many different options” to make that happen.

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Asked this morning if airport travellers would have to change, the Premier said the government wanted “to make it the best journey it can be … otherwise people won’t use it”.

He said the airport rail link needed to get commuters “where they need to go as quickly as possible” but added that the government did not want to “price it at a point where no one uses it”.

Opposition Leader Michael O’Brien said the Suburban Rail Loop did not have a business case and it “doesn’t even have a proper budget”.

“Daniel Andrews is taking Victorians for a ride but it’s just not on a train at the moment,” he said.