AUSTRALIA’s federal government will contribute a further $A 3.8bn ($US 2.71bn) to Melbourne’s $US 125bn Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) project. The new funding brings total federal government contributions to the 90km project, that will link Cheltenham in the southeast with Werribee in the southwest via Melbourne airport, to more than $A 6bn.
The announcement was made shortly after the federal government effectively shelved the $A 45bn Inland Rail freight project on the grounds of increasing costs and poor viability.
The state government of Victoria has committed about $A 11.8bn for the first stage of the four-section SLR project, the 26km SLR East from Cheltenham to Box Hill, and has awarded construction contracts worth $A 13bn. Two more contract packages will be finalised in 2026 and 2027.
SLR East was originally estimated to cost $A 35bn. Costs have since rocketed, although no official estimates of total costs have been published.
“Ensuring Victorians can get into greater Melbourne and across suburbs, rather than having to go into the CBD then back out, helps speed up travel times, get cars off the road and increases opportunities for businesses in Melbourne’s east,” says prime minister, Anthony Albanese.
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