Fitting to announce on April 1st.
The SRL has gone to two state elections now, it has a mandate to be built. The feds pulling their token contribution isn’t going to kill it.
What’s the problem with the State funding the SRL? If the States (and Territories) are saying that these infrastructure projects are important, then they shouldn’t be contingent on getting Federal funding.
I think Victoria is perfectly capable of it - but it goes to the bad spot that states are in with revenue raising powers, other than begging for a higher portion of GST, the only other things are fairly regressive levies and the like to raise funding for major capital projects other than begging the feds for cash.
The SRL isn’t my favourite project - though I think it’s better than airport rail - but it’s about the only thing on the table to do something for housing more Victorians that isn’t car dependent urban sprawl. The eastern suburbs have capacity (comparatively) in their infrastructure that the West and North doesn’t, hospitals, schools, etc, as they are population areas that have aged as young families are priced out.
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I think both projects are critical for Victoria’s future, but personally, Airport Rail should be ahead in terms of priority.
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Buses can do it better. The bus can be more direct, have luggage storage capacity the HCMTs won’t offer, and with proper priorities in traffic, can be faster than the trip into the city and then back out again. They can also run 24/7, which would be something the rail link won’t be able to do, meaning many workers at the airport will still need to drive.
Most people don’t need to go to the airport that often - many of those who do are taking a boot full of luggage and no level of public transport will work for them, and while I almost always use the SkyBus, I’ve had to take a taxi because the trains into the city aren’t running early enough to get to the airport for an early flight - the bus was running, but I couldn’t get to Southern Cross to get to it.
For those the SkyBus works for, the train will be 10-30 minutes faster depending on traffic and transfer times, for those it doesn’t work for, there’s very few people the train solves the problem for. Except maybe those on the Cranbourne/Pakenham lines with a direct one seat ride to the airport, if you weren’t willing to do the transfer from Southern Cross to the SkyBus, you probably won’t want to drag your luggage from Town Hall to your platform at Flinders St.
A fraction of the money spent buying out the SkyBus contract to make it part of the standard Myki fare, adding more services from places other than the CBD and priority lanes for buses in key segments of the route is way cheaper and gets us most of the benefits.
I’d rather prioritise the transport services people use each day, not a handful of times a year. To me I think we’re too hung up on that the other states have it so we should. The vast majority of people going to Sydney Airport still drive or take a taxi.
For me, the problem with Dutton’s announcement today is that LNP wants to divert $500 million from the federal funding for Melbourne Airport Rail to other projects in Victoria. That amount is the difference between a basic extension of Sunshine station and the ultimate expansion of Sunshine station.
That’s probably because the Airport Link surcharge discourages them to take a train to Sydney Airport. If that surcharge is axed, I reckon the patronage will jump.
Agreed. When the surcharge for Mascot and Green Square was removed, station usage exploded by 70% in the first two months alone, and continued growing.
Single-deck trains on the Airport Link with luggage space would also massively improve the usefulness and appeal of this line.
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Would unironically be a great addition 
No more long 2 hour trips to the GC via train!
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Then we need to resolve the massive fiscal imbalance between the states and the Commonwealth. States becoming hooked on GST revenue is not the solution - but neither is the amount of money going to Canberra.
sadly that’s not going to happen anytime soon, despite the current model being incredibly broken
i went to perth twice last year. Both times i got off the plane, got my bags and was on the train and into the city nice and quickly.
It was not expensive, and it was a good easy way to get to the city. I’ve also caught trains to and from Heathrow, JFK and O’ Haire.
the point is that individual people might only catch an airport train a few times a year, but overall, it will be used if priced right. it will take traffic off the roads and allow airport workers a cheaper way to work.
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Has happened before in Adelaide
“The staff who noticed the door was becoming ajar acted very quickly,” Sydney Metro chief Peter Regan said on Thursday.
Regan said the driverless train came to a halt before reaching Crows Nest.
While he could not say how fast the train was travelling, Sydney Metro trains can reach speeds of up to 100km/h.
“It is a serious incident,” Regan said.
“It hasn’t happened before and we are determined to ensure that the systems and procedures are reviewed.”
(NSW Premier Chris Minns) travelled to Campsie Station in Sydney’s west with Regan to announce testing had begun on the Southwest Metro Line.
The first train rolled into Campsie, marking the start of more than 65,000 hours of testing before the new line to Bankstown opens in 2026.
Also from the article:
Investigations are continuing, but Regan said he understood staff did not fully follow procedures to manually shut the door.
7News and 9News reported in their main bulletins that the door was found faulty before the incident shown on video but instead of being manually locked closed by staff, it was manually locked open by mistake.
Transport Minister Rita Saffioti confirmed only the inner section of the Armadale line will open on June 9 as part of its flagship Metronet project — including the elevated stations at Carlisle, Oats Street, Queens Park, Cannington and Beckenham.
The remainder of the line from Kenwick to Byford will reopen when the elevated Armadale and Byford Stations are completed, which Ms Saffioti said would be “a few months later” than the June 9 opening.
Perth’s first east–west cross line connection, the Thornlie-Cockburn link, which has been years in the making, will also open on June 9.
It’s doubtful they’ll go to the time or expense when most of the remaining high-floor trams are on schedule to be replaced in the coming 5-10 years anyway.
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The State of Vic is too broke.
Worth noting there are serious concerns too about the new Maidstone Tram Depot. It’s being built on a flood-plain…