Suburban Rail Loop will transform Victoria’s public transport system, connecting our suburbs and making travel easier and more convenient. It will link with every major train line from the Frankston line to the Werribee line via Melbourne Airport, improving access to housing, jobs, schools, universities and hospitals in Melbourne’s middle suburbs.

What we’re up to now

Technical, planning and design work is well advanced, and community and stakeholder engagement is continuing along the SRL East corridor.

Geotechnical drilling and engineering assessments, along with expert technical assessments and stakeholder and community engagement, informed planning and design work and helped with preparation of the Environment Effects Statement (EES).

An Inquiry and Advisory Committee (IAC) was appointed by the Minister for Planning on 14 November 2021 under the Environment Effects Act 1978 and the Planning and Environment Act 1987 to advise on the EES and draft Planning Scheme Amendment.

The EES and draft Planning Scheme Amendment were on public exhibition from 5 November to 16 December 2021. Planning Panels Victoria collected public submissions during this time.

The IAC undertook a public hearing process from 28 February to 5 May 2022, to hear from Suburban Rail Loop Authority (SRLA), councils, community members, other parties and submitters and consider and advise the Minister for Planning on the environmental effects of the project and the draft Planning Scheme Amendment. Following provision of the IAC’s report, the Minister for Environment and Climate Action (as Minister jointly administering the Environment Effects Act) provided their assessment of the environmental effects of the project.

Engagement program

To support the successful planning, development and delivery of SRL East, SRLA is engaging a diverse range of stakeholders including residents, businesses, community and interest groups, local government, institutions, utility providers, government departments, commercial landholders and developers.

The engagement program includes several engagement phases each with a different focus.

Environment Effects Statement (EES) exhibition and public hearing

Engagement during this phase continued to raise awareness about SRL East, while preparing people for and supporting them through the EES public exhibition and submissions process. Engagement with stakeholders continued, updating them on broader scope items and design progress for SRL East. Due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions in 2021, online tools continued to be the primary method of engaging with local communities in SRL East areas. Some face-to-face community engagement as part of the EES public exhibition, including drop-in information sessions and community pop-ups, were held from November to December 2021. This report provides a summary of key activities and community and stakeholder sentiment as part of Phase Four engagement for SRL East from mid-2021 to early-2022.

Pop-ups and drop-in information sessions

During the EES public exhibition period from 5 November to 16 December 2021, the project team interacted with more than 1300 community members face-to-face during 8 pop-up information sessions held at train stations and shopping centres, and five drop-in information sessions held at venues along the SRL East alignment.

Online engagement

The SRL East EES public exhibition period ran from 5 November to 16 December 2021. For the first time in Victoria, a fully digital EES was prepared to provide better access to information for everyone. The SRL East digital EES allowed people to easily connect with the information they wanted, so they could better understand what the project means for them.

The digital EES was viewed more than 19,000 times by more than 11,000 unique visitors.

To support the SRL East digital EES, online engagement included a refresh of the virtual information room to provide more detail and help people navigate the EES.

Information provided in the room included an overview of the EES and the 19 different studies and technical reports, information on how to navigate the digital EES, as well as information about how to make a submission.

Formal submissions were sought by Planning Panels Victoria during the EES public exhibition period via the Engage Victoria online engagement platform.

What we heard

SRL East rail infrastructure engagement

During the SRL East EES public exhibition period, staff interacted with more than 1300 people at pop-up information sessions held at train stations and shopping centres, and drop-in information sessions held at venues along the SRL East alignment.

The purpose of these sessions was to continue to raise awareness about SRL East, while helping people understand and navigate the digital EES and submissions process. The focus of these sessions was to ultimately encourage people to make a formal submission to Planning Panels Victoria. As such, we did not formally collect community feedback during this phase. However, a summary of the key issues raised in each precinct is provided below.

Cheltenham key issues

• Construction plans including timelines, sequencing of activities and potential impacts for the local community.
• Importance of safe ground contamination management.
• Protections of Sir William Fry Reserve.
• Clarification around land impacts and planning overlays.
• Traffic and transport including plans for active transport connections and management of road closures.

Train stabling facility key issues

• Location of the facility and its proximity to local residents.
• Management of air quality impacts from the facility including dust and emissions from trains.
• Consideration of visual impacts of the facility including lighting and light spill, especially at night.
• Importance of the health and wellbeing of local residents. Traffic and transport including how road closures and pedestrian movements will be managed.

Clayton and Monash key issues

• Clarification around land impacts and planning overlays.
• Management of tunnelling impacts including noise and vibration and any potential impacts to property prices.
• Support for local business to manage impacts.
• Interest in station locations and project delivery timeframes.

Glen Waverley key issues

• Station location and connectivity including how people will move between the new SRL East station and the exisiting Glen Waverley Station.
• Traffic and transport including traffic noise, truck movements, Coleman Parade closure, and ensuring safety for pedestrians and cyclists.
• Management of tunnelling impacts including noise and vibrations and any potential impacts to property prices.
• Clarification of the size, operations, and likely local impacts of the Emergency Support Facility.

Burwood and Box Hill key issues

• Station location and connectivity including how people will move between the new SRL East station and the existing Box Hill Station.
• Management of impacts on public open and loss of trees and vegetation including plans for tree and vegetation replacement.
• Traffic and transport including impacts on traffic and local roads, walking and cycling connections, and connections to bus services.
• Protection of local heritage including buildings and other local assets. Clarification around land impacts and planning overlays.

Planning Panels Victoria submissions and hearing process

The EES and draft Planning Scheme Amendment were on public exhibition from 5 November to 16 December 2021. During this time, Planning Panels Victoria received 362 submissions. The IAC conducted a public hearing process from 28 February to 5 May 2022, to hear from SRLA, councils, community members, other parties and submitters and consider and advise the Minister for Planning on the environmental effects of the project and the draft Planning Scheme Amendment.