The Government of Victoria has committed to building a new airport rail link in its upcoming state budget.
A new electrified rail link will see services leaving every 10 minutes from Southern Cross Station for Melbourne Airport.
The new route is being built to help cater for the 60 million passengers expected to be using the airport by the mid 2030s.
Premier Denis Napthine said detailed design and planning work would now be undertaken to identify whether to run part of the service on the metropolitan network or regional V/Line route.
Napthine said:Â “The Melbourne Airport Rail Link is a critical component of the Coalition Government’s broader transport plan that will deliver more services to carry more people, more often across metropolitan and regional networks.
“This project will see a new service running along dedicated tracks from Melbourne Airport to Albion where it will join the existing rail network and run through to Southern Cross Station.
“This will be an electrified service that utilises the Albion East route which has previously been identified as the preferred option for an airport rail link.”
The link will consist of both at-grade and viaduct sections, terminating at a new elevated station at Melbourne Airport.
Chief Executive of the Australasian Rail Authority (ARA) Bryan Nye said: “A government’s investment in public transport is good use of public money and it is reassuring to see the Napthine government take ownership of its public transport projects, in particular rail, even in these tough economic times.”
