The hub is located on 175 Scott Street, Newcastle, one block from Queens Wharf.
I doubt weâll see high speed rail in our lifetimes.
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Both sides donât seem to want to negotiate in any real good faith at the moment, so theyâre just turning the screws to see who blinks first. Todays withdrawal of the Fair Work action seems to be delaying the inevitable action in early January.
Itâs hard to see any side conceding any real ground now.
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All this will result in is another report that outlines that HSR is not economically viable.
Weâre better off trying to improve the quality of the existing links
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Exactly. The ship has sailed and sunk on HSR.
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There would not be no where near the number of buses required, it would be a disaster.
The trains are stopping at Morningside station again,but the new lifts that have been installed arenât operational yet. Iâm not going to catch a train from there until they are ,hopefully it wonât be much longer.They also have to complete landscaping around the station.
When the lifts are operational they will finally remove that old staircase.
When is Airport Rail coming? Itâs beyond a joke now. Probably one of the most overdue public transport projects in the nation.
Itâs clear that Labor donât have the ability to deliver it. I also think they will screw up the project anyway. I see these new stations they have built in Victoria have platforms too short for the trains.
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It beggars belief to me that there seems to be more progress on the SRL East between Cheltenham and Box Hill than on the Airport Link to date.
Given that they put the Airport Link within the scope of the SRL they really should be starting with the Susnhine-Airport section and building out from that direction. The North and West are already under-served PT wise compared to the South East so something like this would help address that imbalance.
Itâs in an early design stage now theyâve finally gotten a decision on the above ground positioning of the station. Thereâs blame on both sides, airport rail cutting into the huge profits they make on parking doesnât help. The last date was 2029, but itâs been âpushed back 4 yearsâ since.
I still think it shouldnât be a priority project, itâs a benefit to such a small group of people. Thereâs a plan to have a station access surcharge to pay for it - so similar to the SkyBus at the moment, it will quickly be worse value than a shared taxi if youâre travelling as a group.
For airport workers, the line wonât be 24 hour so theyâll still be stuck with other means of getting to the airport, and it wonât really add much benefit to those not going to the airport, as thereâs no stations the other side and only one additional general station added from what will be a quite expensive line.
Sure I suppose itâs the one thing the feds will actually help fund in Victoria - but thatâs about all itâs got going for it.
Thereâd be no point doing that as the SRL is incompatible with the âSRL Airportâ - youâd have to change trains at the airport to go from Sunshine to Broadmeadows, even once itâs actually all built.
Iâd respectfully disagree and argue itâs going to benefit a lot more people than (for example) SRL East which seems to be the current pet project of the state government.
The Skybus is a sub-optimal solution thatâs only going to get worse in time- given it is beholden to the whims of the traffic on the Tulla Freeway at any given time as it doesnât even have itâs own dedicated lanes. Youâve only got one point of entry too being Southern Cross station and itâs not the most intuitive link from the train platforms there down to where the bus terminal and coach bays are.
The Metro tunnel (a project which is one of the best investments in Melbourneâs public transport network in quite some time in my view) really helps build the Airport rail case too- travellers can hop on anywhere along the Sunshine-Dandenong Corridor by the sounds of it (making it much easier for travellers coming from the south-east in particular), while the Sunshine interchange is going to be a major time saving and benefit for regional travellers.
The majority of Victorians will be able to get to the airport with just one interchange while residents in the south-eastern suburbs will be able to get to the airport without changing trains. Melbourneâs west will also have direct airport access via Sunshine Station, or Footscray Station for passengers on the Werribee and Williamstown lines.
Interesting- does make the SRL sound kinda pointless altogether in that case if itâs never going to actually be a proper continuous orbital loop even when fully complete.
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It is fully funded, the issue is the obstructionism from the airport, first on their demands for an underground station, now for some exorbitant demand for compensation of the land it will be constructed on.
Itâs a shame now seems the metro tunnel will open at least a decade before the airport rail happens, so after spending $16bil, a lot of that new capacity will go unused.
I think there will be a change of plans and electrification of the melton or Wyndham vale line will be brought forward to take up that capacity in the tunnel and the airport line will be redirected to southern cross.
Much more ideal considering those high capacity trains that take daily commuters from pakenham to the city are not really appropriate for an airport trip.
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Thatâs an interesting idea- Iâve seen a similar proposal a few years ago which suggested an Airport link as part of a Melbourne Metro 3 proposal (going from the Airport to Arden then Southern Cross and then across to Doncaster. Definitely something Iâd like to see the state government consider.
Melbourne Metro 3 â a second airport rail line linking to Southern Cross, via Arden Macaulay and Maribyrnong â could be built by 2035, the council paper said.
The eastern end of the this line could extend to north-east Richmond and beyond to Kew, Doncaster and Ringwood, filling a gap in the heavy rail network.
Melton and Wyndham Vale definitely should get electrification and it should be sooner rather than later given the amount of population growth out that way. V/Line just doesnât cut it especially on weekends when frequencies spiral out to up to an hour (and when sharing services with Ballarat and Geelong).
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I rode the new Mariyung (orange livery) train from Newcastle to Sydney this afternoon.
Certainly quieter and smoother than the old one, and the air con was nice and cool for a 34 degree day.
And a bit quicker too, saw a top speed of 127 km/h, whereas the old grey ones maxxed out at 115 km/h.
I also liked the electronic signs that told you how long until the next few stops.
The seats Iâm not sure about. Whilst they are cloth trimmed, well shaped and just soft enough, they are a bit too upright for my liking. And they are fixed, so half are always facing backwards (I hate that). Seems others did too, they were always the last ones taken.
A couple of interior pics
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I too found the upright position uncomfortable
Hereâs a side on view of the seats:
I wonder how long it will be before someone complains about the power sockets, no doubt some brat will stick a pin it it.
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Did @Radiohead find any power socket and USB ports out of action because NSW people are dickheads? And yes, I count myself as a dickhead. 
I wouldâve loved to get on one of these over the weekend, but noooooo - fucking trackwork between Hornsby and Newcastle.
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I didnât try the USB/240V pin outlet. The lights were on, so I assumed they were working.
@ElCapitanCranky - most Sydney to Newcastle and return services are still using the old trains. Only 3-4 a day are the new trains. I had to ring Broadmeadow station direct today to find out which ones were the new Mariyung trains. There is no way to find out in advance online.
Oh FFS. Only NSW can get all excited about a new train and still manage to fuck it up.