’Unaffordable’ Sunshine Coast rail would have blown out to $20bn

An explosive submission to the Olympic and Paralympic review board, obtained by The Courier-Mail, reveals the true cost of the Sunshine Coast rail would have ballooned to $20bn.

The Sunshine Coast rail would have blown out to an “unaffordable” $20bn

The total cost of the Sunshine Coast Direct Rail is expected to hit $20bn, the equivalent of $530,000 per metre of track, as experts warn the line won’t reach Caloundra before 2032.

In an explosive submission to the government’s Olympic and Paralympic review board, obtained by The Courier-Mail, advocacy group Sunshine Coast 2032 (SC2032) revealed the true cost of the heavy rail would boom to $20bn for the entire 378km stretch.

The group, which has consulted with several international transport infrastructure experts to independently assess the Sunshine Coast Rail proposal, are now urging the state government to consider an alternative legacy transport investment.

SC2032 chair Roz White said with the deepening debt burden announced by Treasurer David Janetski last week, the state could no longer afford the “eye-watering” cost of the direct rail.

“We really have to face the harsh facts and harsh reality of what’s affordable and deliverable,” she said.

The Sunshine Coast rail would have cost too much to be deliverable and wouldn’t have been completed until years after the Olympics.

The submission outlines several key delivery issues including plans to build the track over a flood plain, requiring it to be raised 12-18m above ground.

Based on current station locations, the rail is also likely to reach average speeds of 50km/h during regular service hours and 60km/h during peak hour.

Public transport expert John Lee, who delivered the rail services for the Sydney 2000 Games, said the Sunshine Coast Rail provided little value for money and would not be complete through to Maroochydore until “half way through this century”.

“It won’t get to Caloundra until 2035,” he said.

“Cross River Rail has been going ten years and it’s still not finished, so let’s not kid ourselves.”

Mr Lee said the Sunshine Coast instead needed a mass transit solution to match the urban environment including population and future housing densities.

With the coast’s population forecast to grow by 200,000 over 20 years, the network could be designed in a way that allows light or heavy rail to be built on top of the corridor at a later stage.

Then-Deputy Premier Cameron Dick and then-Premier Steven Miles officially open a new information and engagement centre for the Sunshine Coast Direct Rail. Picture: Patrick Woods.

“Heavy rail is not necessary, it’s ten times more expensive, with price hikes due to an over headed infrastructure market across the nation,” he said.

“It means Queensland will pay a premium of 30-40 per cent.”

The SC2032 is advocating for a Bus Rapid Transit program to connect airports, universities and Olympic venues ahead of 2032 at a rough cost of $3-5bn.

It is understood SC2032 is scheduled to meet with Infrastructure Minister Jarrod Bleijie next week.

Mr Bleijie said mass transit solutions on the Sunshine Coast was a key election commitment.

“As we have previously said the government will listen to the advice of the Games Independent Infrastructure and Coordination Authority,” he said.

The federal and state governments have jointly funded $5.5bn towards stage one of the rail between Beerwah and Caloundra.

Construction is not slated to start until at least 2026.

Originally published as ’Unaffordable’ Sunshine Coast rail would have blown out to $20bn