The Metro Tunnel means more ways to move around Melbourne, new connections and more choice.
Trains will start running through the Metro Tunnel in early December 2025, stopping at the 5 new underground train stations.
From 1 February 2026, the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury Line will run through the new tunnels under Melbourne’s CBD.
Where will the Metro Tunnel take me?
From 1 February 2026, services on the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury Line will all go through the Metro Tunnel instead of the City Loop.
- Taking these train lines out of the City Loop will create a more reliable service, with trains able to run closer together on new high-capacity signalling. This will enable a turn-up-and-go service on these lines.
- Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury line passengers will have direct train access to the Metro Tunnel's new stations. Passengers on all other metropolitan train lines will only need to make a single transfer.
- Passengers can switch easily between City Loop and Metro Tunnel services, with connections between Town Hall and Flinders Street stations and also between State Library and Melbourne Central stations.
The Metro Tunnel will connect two of Melbourne’s biggest housing growth corridors – Cranbourne/ Pakenham and Sunbury/ Diggers Rest – and ensure North Melbourne's urban development precinct – Arden – is connected to the train network as it grows into a thriving community.
Major universities and hospitals at Clayton, Footscray and Parkville, as well as destinations like the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne and the Shrine of Remembrance, will all be better connected to the rail network.
Better access to health services
The Metro Tunnel will transform travel for hospital staff, patients and visitors, with Parkville Station on the doorstep of the Royal Melbourne and Royal Women's hospitals and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre.
More than 30 hospitals and day procedure centres along the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury Line will be better connected by the Metro Tunnel.
Better access to education
The Metro Tunnel will provide better connections for students and staff across Victoria to Melbourne's universities, TAFEs and schools, including direct rail access to The University of Melbourne for the first time in its 170-year history.
The Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury Line will give people access by train to hundreds of tertiary and TAFE courses, giving students and staff more ways to access learning and job opportunities.
More schools will be within a 10 minute walk of a train station along the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury Line.
Better access to jobs
The Metro Tunnel provides rail access for the first time to the St Kilda Road commercial hub. It will also give direct access to the Arden precinct, a future urban renewal area.
The Metro Tunnel also connects:
- 4 major employment centres: Sunshine, Footscray, Parkville, and Clayton
- 3 Skills and Jobs Centres: RMIT, William Angliss Institute, and Chisholm Institute.
These centres are areas with growing concentrations of businesses and institutions, providing a major contribution to the Victorian economy.
Better connections to attractions
The Metro Tunnel will connect the north-west and south-east of Melbourne, opening up more ways to travel to popular destinations by public transport.
Soon everyone will be better connected to Melbourne's parks, sports and entertainment venues, shopping centres and markets.
Better accessibility
The new Metro Tunnel stations will be accessible for people in wheelchairs or with mobility issues, through facilities such as lifts, hearing loops, tactile ground indicators and Changing Places (accessible toilets).
Metro Tunnel stations will have multiple entrances with lifts that are accessible to everyone. Learn more about the Metro Tunnel's accessibility features.
