A first term Liberal Nationals Government has committed to constructing a high speed rail between Geelong and Melbourne, cutting the travel time in half to only 32 minutes.
The plan for high speed rail between Geelong and Melbourne will cut travel times from 58 minutes to just 32 minutes, a saving of 26 minutes.
Reaching speeds of 200km per hour, this high speed rail network would be the fastest in Australia.
The High Speed Rail Project will see the rebuild of much of Victoria’s current Class 1 track to 200km per hour operation as well as major track improvements on every other passenger rail line.
Current travel times between Warrnambool and Melbourne of three hours and 25 minutes will be slashed to one hour and 52 minutes – a saving of over three hours on a round trip.
Under the rail network revolution, Geelong will also become a major hub for regional rail services that connect the city with regional centres. The new Geelong Metro project will provide the first metropolitan Geelong commuter rail service.
Operating from Colac to Bannockburn via Geelong, as well as a service from Werribee to Waurn Ponds via Geelong, the new Geelong Metro will link with local bus services and put in place huge new public transport options for Victoria’s second largest city.
There is currently no direct rail service from Geelong to Werribee – the Geelong Metro project will ensure that employment and educational centres between Geelong and Werribee are now properly connected.
The Geelong Metro initiative builds on the Liberal Nationals plan to appoint the first Minister for Geelong, implement a new Geelong planning statement, Plan Geelong, and commence a new planning strategy for Geelong inner city revitalisation called ‘Postcode 3220’.
The Liberal Nationals Government has recently announced a Population Commission to manage population growth throughout Victoria and ensure that regional cities have the infrastructure and services needed to sustain that growth.
One of the most important functions of the Population Commission will be to ensure regional centres like Geelong receive the right number of doctors, hospital beds, teachers, healthcare workers and police to match population growth.
A Liberal Nationals Government will also fund new-generation, faster, variants of the successful V/Locity trains which will provide better comfort and legroom, safety and amenity for passengers.
At the core of the plan for European-style high speed rail is the further separation of the regional network from the metropolitan network, thus increasing capacity and avoiding a ‘dump and run’ at the end of the suburban rail network.
At an estimated total cost of $15 billion to $19 billion this project will change the map of Victoria, and provide at least 10,000 new job opportunities across the state.
