Victorian premier Denis Napthine has promised a Coalition state government will build a rail link to Melbourne Airport if it is re-elected in November.
Dr Napthine said May’s state budget would include funding for plans for the rail link which would run from the airport to Albion before linking in with the rest of the Melbourne rail network to Southern Cross Station. It is expected services would depart every 10 minutes during peak times, with trips taking about 25 minutes.
”This project has been on the books for over 40 years and a Napthine Coalition government will outline our plans to build this rail link in the upcoming state budget,” the Premier told a Liberal Party state council meeting on Sunday. ”The budget will outline the process for construction of this very, very significant project, but we are making it very clear that the Coalition government will build an airport rail link.”
The Premier did not outline a timeframe or budget for the project.
A 2013 study by the state government body Public Transport Victoria recommended an airport rail link follow a modified “Albion East” corridor design.
According to Public Transport Victoria: “The new Albion East design follows the 2001 route from the airport boundary via new tracks through reserved land and a freight corridor, but will use the existing rail tracks from Sunbury within the Sunshine corridor and connect with the Melbourne Metro rail tunnel, extending the link to Melbourne’s east. This alignment outperformed options which connected the Airport with the CBD via a direct tunnel, a connection via Craigieburn and a connection via Flemington.”
