Airport rail to take off under labor government

Construction of the Melbourne Airport Rail Link will begin in the next term of a re-elected Andrews Labor Government.

Premier Daniel Andrews today announced that a re-elected Labor Government would provide up to $5 billion towards the construction of the long-awaited project, matching the commitment from the Federal Government.

A route options assessment undertaken by Transport for Victoria has shown that of the four routes considered, the Sunshine alignment – previously known as the Albion East alignment – is the Victorian Government’s preferred route for this congestion-busting project.

The Sunshine Route will see trains travel to the airport from the CBD via a new Sunshine Super Hub, which will connect regional and metro train lines – including the Metro Tunnel – to the new airport link.

This new transport hub will also pave the way for fast regional rail services from Geelong and Ballarat, connected to Melbourne Airport, via just one change.

From Sunshine, trains will head north utilising both the Albion East rail reserve and sections of tunnel to protect homes and businesses, before connecting in to Melbourne Airport.

The rigorous new analysis produced as part of initial work on the Airport Rail Link Business Case shows that the Sunshine Route rated 4.3 out of 5 overall in the comparative analysis of routes, with a total cost in the range of $8-13 billion.

Funding under a re-elected Andrews Labor Government will match funding from the Commonwealth, while private sector contributions will also play a part in the delivery of the project.

The Federal Government was briefed on the outcome of the route options assessment earlier this month and work is underway on the full business case which will be completed by Rail Projects Victoria next year. Construction is set to begin during the next term of a re-elected Andrews Labor Government.

Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews
"Only Labor has removed the level crossings and is building the Metro Tunnel – and only a re-elected Labor Government will deliver the Melbourne Airport Rail Link."

"This project has been talked about for too long, it’s time to get on and build it and that’s exactly what we’ll do."

Quotes attributable to Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan
"The Andrews Labor Government will build the airport link via Sunshine, so that all Victorians can access the airport by rail, no matter where you live."

"Not only will this deliver fast train services to and from the airport, but it will pave the way for fast rail to Geelong and Ballarat."