Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) is a step closer with the release of the Business and Investment Case outlining how it will deliver more jobs, better services and access to housing as Victoria continues to grow.
Planning, design and consultation has been underway to ensure Melbourne has a rail network on par with the world’s biggest cities.
The full Business and Investment Case shows SRL will support 24,000 jobs across Victoria and connect people to around 550,000 jobs in the precincts around the stations, with first trains expected to run in 2035.
It also reveals the project will:
- take 600,000 car trips off our roads every day.
- slash public transport travel times by an average of 40 minutes for a one-way trip.
- stimulate $58.7 billion in economic, social and environmental benefits to our state.
SRL will deliver a new 90km orbital rail line and strategic land planning and development initiatives in SRL Precincts – the 1600m zone around stations – giving Victorians jobs and homes closer to a train line and changing the way our state travels forever.
The Business and Investment Case finds SRL East – between Cheltenham and Box Hill – and SRL North – from Box Hill to the Airport – will deliver up to $58.7 billion in economic, social and environmental benefits to the state. Planning work continues on SRL West, which will fully integrate with record transport investments in the west, including Melbourne Airport Rail.
SRL East will be complete in 2035 and combined with the completion of SRL North, it will create a long pipeline of work during delivery and attract more than 160,000 additional jobs to the broader station precincts.
The rail line between Cheltenham and Melbourne Airport will carry more than 430,000 passengers daily when SRL North is complete, taking more than 600,000 car trips off our roads every day. A convenient, fast and direct link to Melbourne Airport, the line will carry more than 30,000 passengers to and from the Airport each day.
SRL East is expected to cost between $30 billion to $34.5 billion across 14 years, to be delivered by 2035. A range of funding streams will be used to fund SRL, including Victorian Government contributions, Commonwealth contributions and a mix of value capture opportunities.
Community and stakeholder consultation has been underway since 2019 and opportunities for input continues. Preparation for Initial Works for SRL East will kick off next year and we want to hear from you. Provide your feedback to help develop site-specific plans to mitigate and manage any impacts.