Regional Rail Express, Vic
Constructing new urban rail routes
The Regional Rail Express will provide a 40‑kilometre dual‑track link from West Werribee to the Southern Cross Station in central Melbourne via Sunshine. It will segregate V/Line regional rail services from metropolitan rail services and include a new metropolitan rail tunnel linking the western suburbs with Melbourne's central business district.
The Government is providing $3.2 billion towards this major infrastructure project worth $4.3 billion in total.
This project involves the extension of platforms and other captial works enabling eight‑car trains to operate on the Geelong and Bacchus Marsh rail lines with a new station at Tarneit. Existing track will be duplicated from Sunshine to Kensington and disused track from South Kensington to Southern Cross station will be utilised.
Providing new transport solutions
Melbourne's population is growing steadily. This project provides for substantial increases in capacity and reliability for Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo regional rail services. Once completed, trains from these regional centres will be able to run express into Melbourne without being delayed behind suburban trains.
The project will also free up capacity for extra suburban services from Werribee, Sunbury and Craigieburn along Melbourne's western growth corridor.
Once completed, the Regional Rail Express will deliver capacity for an extra 9,000 regional and suburban passengers every hour.
Construction is expected to commence in 2010 and is scheduled for completion in 2014.
