The Murray Basin Rail Project will upgrade Victoria’s rail freight network to meet growing industry demand for services.
The project will drive economic growth, create jobs and ensure the future of freight in the region, removing thousands of truck trips off regional roads.
Visual: flyover footage of a freight line.
Text: Looking at the last 12 months on the Murray Basin Rail Project
Text: Here's what happened
Visual: Shots of workers in hi vis working on the rail line.
Text: Over 500,000 hours worked
Visual: Tamping machine tamping ballast during night works.
Visual: Loader machine dropping a load of ballast.
Text: Over 80,000 tonnes of ballast laid
Visual: Shots of composite plastic rail sleepers.
Text: Over 830 plastic sleepers installed
Visual: Machinery at work laying track at Wiltshire.
Text: Over 180km of rail installed
Visual: Workers and machinery doing track upgrades on the Ouyen to Murrayville Line.
Text: 109km of upgrades from Ouyen to Murrayville
Visual: Workers guiding a machine laying ballast at Donald Siding.
Text: Reinstated siding at Donald
Visual: Overhead view timelapse footage of the Merbein Siding being constructed.
Text: Siding extension at Merbein
Visual: Workers putting the finishing touches on the track between Ararat and Maryborough.
Text: 88km of track upgrades between Ararat and Maryborough
Visual: The finished track installation at Elmhurst.
Text: Track installation for Elmhurst passing loop
Visual: Overhead shot of track installation works at Tourello.
Text: Track installation for Tourello passing loop
Visual: Stacked freight containers.
Visual: Bird's eye vision of a freight line.
Text: Helping to increase capacity, reliability, resilience
Text: of Victoria's rail freight industry
Project benefits
The Murray Basin Rail Project has been developed in consultation with the freight and agriculture industries. It will deliver key benefits for primary producers and freight operators including:
Key works
- track upgrades on the Ouyen to Murrayville Line to remove speed restrictions (complete)
- track upgrades from Ararat to Maryborough to increase wagon load capacity (complete)
- new or upgraded sidings at Donald and Merbein to boost storage capacity (complete)
- new and extended passing loops at Elmhurst, Emu and Tourello to improve network flexibility
- upgraded signalling at Ararat, Maryborough and Dunolly junctions and the Ouyen yard to improve operations
- re-sleepering from Sea Lake to Dunolly to reduce speed restrictions (complete)
- planning and assessment work for further upgrades.
Project delivery
Regional Rail Revival will deliver the project.
An alliance of ACCIONA, Coleman Rail and SMEC delivered the Ouyen to Murrayville Line track upgrades, Ararat to Maryborough re-railing and the Merbein and Donald siding works. The Alliance will also deliver passing loops at Emu, Elmhurst and Tourello, Ouyen refuelling and signalling upgrades at Maryborough and Ouyen yards.
Revised business case
A revised Murray Basin Rail Project business case was developed by the Department of Transport and Rail Projects Victoria and submitted to the Commonwealth Government in 2020.
The business case outlines a revised scope of works to optimise the standard and broad-gauge network. This was funded by the Australian and Victorian governments.
Download a copy of the Murray Basin Rail Project Business Case Review Summary 2020 (PDF, 235.1 KB).
