First look at Melbourne’s airport rail
Construction of the long-awaited airport rail link is due to start next year. Here’s when it will be ready to take its first passengers.
Victoria
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Melbourne’s airport rail is set to soar high above the city with the first concept drawings revealing how the long-awaited project could look.
With the business case for the rail link still being finalised, and construction earmarked to get underway in 2022, the first drawings show how Melbourne’s soon-to-be second highest bridge could look.
The new bridge will be 550 metres long, 50 metres high and built alongside the existing heritage listed rail bridge over the Maribyrnong River.
Transport Infrastructure Minister Jacinta Allan said the proposed elevated rail solution would avoid costly and disruptive impacts to several major roads.
Once finished, services will run every 10 minutes into the heart of the CBD, connecting through the new Melbourne Metro Tunnel and arriving within half an hour.
Sunshine station will become a major interchange for the airport rail services, connecting to growth areas in the city’s north and west and regional Victoria.
The state and federal governments have each committed $5 billion to the project.
Ms Allan said it was always expected construction of the project, which is set to be completed by 2029, would cost between $8 billion and $13 billion.
“That was the estimate that we had some years ago when we released the strategic appraisal document that accompanied the announcement of the alignment of the trainline through Sunshine,” she said.
“We’re working very carefully through the development of the business case.
“Some of the final costs won’t be known until we do get into that procurement stage until we can get in and check out what’s in and around the airport environment.
“It’s all a normal part of the planning and delivery of a project of this size and scale.”
Ms Allan said the release of the first concept designs was a critical step in the procurement process.
But opposition spokesman David Davis dubbed the planned rail link a “second rate solution”.
Mr Davis said rather than connection through the Melbourne Metro Tunnel, the airport link should have been a “sharp, fast, dedicated line from Southern Cross to the Airport”.
“It will use existing capacity that’s being built now, capacity that will rob Peter to pay Paul,” he said.
“What was required with the airport rail was brand new capacity from Southern Cross to the airport, that was fast.
“I don’t think the community ever wanted a slow train, a suburban train, a train that never actually offered the additional capacity that was needed.”
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