Melbourne Metro

Melbourne Metro
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Background
Locale	Melbourne
Transit type	Rapid transit
Number of stations	South Kensington railway station South Yarra railway station
Headquarters	Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Technical
System length	9-kilomtres

The Melbourne Metro is a planned metropolitan rail tunnel in Melbourne, Australia. The tunnels are proposed to travel from South Kensington railway station (north west of the Melbourne CBD) to South Yarra railway station (in the south east). The tunnel was announced in December 2008 as part of the Victorian State Government's Victorian Transport Plan.

The tunnel under its original proposal was set to be built in two stages. However the Baillieu State Government has instead reconfigured the proposal to be completed as a 9-kilometre one-stage project extending from Footscray/South Kensington to the Domain Interchange, providing direct rail connections for the first time to the St Kilda Road business district, south of the Melbourne CBD, and relieving pressure on the many tram services currently running through the area. The tunnels are part of a wider plan to reconfigure and untangle Melbourne's rail network. The plan will see the tunnels serviced by Sunbury (Sydenham) line services initially, which will no longer operate via the City Loop. Melton line services are also expected to use the tunnel when this line is upgraded to an electrified, metro service.

The Melbourne Metro rail tunnel would provide new underground stations at the Domain Interchange (tram interchange at the corner of St Kilda Road and Domain Road), and the Parkville university/hospital precinct (near Grattan Street or the Haymarket round about on Flemington Road), as well as a station in North Melbourne to be known as Arden. The project also aims to provide interchange opportunities at the Melbourne Central railway station and Flinders Street stations.

The Melbourne Metro is part of a package of major projects to increase capacity in the Melbourne rail network, particularly within the inner part of the network, to relieve pressure of existing service congestion and provide for an expansion of services to accommodate projected growth.

Current status

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In June 2010, Infrastructure Australia, the Commonwealth Government appointed advisory body for major infrastructure investment, defined Melbourne Metro as a "Ready to proceed" project in its report "Getting the fundamentals right for Australia's Infrastructure Priorities". The Commonwealth considers the recommendations of Infrastructure Australia when allocating budget priorities for major infrastructure provision.

The Commonwealth Government had previously provided $40–50 million to the Victorian State Government to undertake detailed route investigations for the rail tunnel. In July 2010, the Victorian Government announced the outcomes of these investigations, with the Melbourne Metro tunnel proposed to terminate at the Domain Interchange, with new stations at Arden (North Melbourne), Parkville (Royal Parade and Grattan Street), CBD North (connected to Melbourne Central), CBD South (connected to Flinders Street Station) and Domain Interchange.

The 2012 Victorian State Budget allocated $49.7 million for ongoing planning and geotechnical works to continue with the project now moving into the formal planning process phase. The project was again given priority in the Victorian Governments' submission to Infrastructure Australia in 2011, however no new funds were allocated in the 2012 Federal Budget. As of May 2012, a Community Refernce Group has been setup to examine the social and environmental impact the project will have on surrounding inner city residents. The project awaits a dual funding commitment from both the State and Federal Government. The project is estimated to cost some $5 billion.

Line

Melbourne Metro Tunnel

Legend Werribee Line, Sydenham Line 6.1km Footscray (FSY) Zone 1 4.7Km South Kensington (SKN) Zone 1 To Southern Cross Station Arden[1] (Proposed) Zone 1 Parkville (Proposed) Zone 1 CBD North (Proposed, interchange with Melbourne Central) Zone 1 CBD South (Proposed, interchange with Flinders Street) Zone 1 Domain (Proposed, interchange with Domain Road tram interchange) Zone 1 To Flinders Street 4.2km South Yarra (SYR) Zone 1 Cranbourne, Frankston and Pakenham lines

References

1. ^ "Regional Rail Link and Melbourne Metro on track" (Press release). Victorian Government. 12 July 2010. http://www.premier.vic.gov.au/newsroom/11045.html. Retrieved 2010-07-12. 

External links

• Map of the proposed metro network (PDF)
• 'Under City Rail Plan to cut Melbourne Congestion' - Herald Sun 9 Nov 2008
• Artist Impressions of metro stations