CONSTRUCTION work has begun on the multi-billion dollar Suburban Rail Loop project.
The eastern section of the rail loop will link Cheltenham Station on the Frankston line to Box Hill Station. Early excavation works began in Clayton last week.
Early construction works on the project will include the laying of a 63 metre sewer pipe, road modifications, service relocations, and preparation to install tunnel boring machines. Project crews are expected to install up to 10 tunnel boring machines to create 26 kilometres of twin tunnels for the rail line, with six stations to be built underground.
Premier Daniel Andrews announced the beginning of construction works last Thursday. He said “work has now started on the Suburban Rail Loop, an iconic project Victorians voted for and one that will transform the way we move around the state.”
“SRL will create thousands of jobs and connect our suburbs, making it easier, faster and more convenient for all Victorians to access our fastest growing employment, health, education and retail centres,” he said.
SRL East is expected to be complete in 2035. The completed Suburban Rail Loop will be finished in three stages, with 90 kilometres of rail linking each major train line through to Melbourne Airport.
A business case released in August last year revealed that SRL East could cost between $30 billion and $34.5 billion (“Big bill expected for rail loop” The News 25/8/21).
The project’s opponents have signalled concern about the fact that construction work has begun so soon after public hearings into the project have concluded. A spokesperson for resident group Move The Train Yard said “the lack of project feasibility/assessment and lack of consultation with numerous local communities is staggering, with many feeling completely blindsided, having no opportunity to properly voice their concerns.”
In November last year, the planning minister appointed an independent advisory committee to advise on the Suburban Rail Loop’s environmental effects statement, which was exhibited between 5 November and 16 December. Public hearings into Suburban Rail Loop East finished on 5 May, with the advisory committee directed to make a report to the planning minister within 35 days.
To view the rail loop’s EES, visit bigbuild.vic.gov.au/projects/suburban-rail-loop/planning/ees
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 8 June 2022
1 Comment
To connect our suburbs and people there should be a train station at DFO Moorabbin shopping centre with a train stabling yard (i.e. maintenance yard) along the way on non-toxic commercial land.