InterCityThe Rail Futures blueprint for faster and

better regional trains in Victoria

PresentationtoVictorianTransportInfrastructureConference

Melbourne,22March2017JohnHearschandDrBillRussell,RailFuturesInstitute

WhatisRailFutures?RailFuturesInstituteisanindependentnon-partisangroup.Itwasformedtoadvocatecost-effectiverailandintermodalsolutionsforpublictransportandfreightproblemsbasedonsoundcommercial,economicandsocialreasoning.

RailFuturesmembersincludeexperiencedrailprofessionals,urbanplanners,engineersandeconomists.

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WhatisInterCity?InterCity isRailFutures’proposalfordevelopingacomprehensivefasterandmoreintegratedregionalrailnetwork,respondingto3mainaims-• morebalancedpopulationgrowth,• betterconnectivity andreducedjourneytimesacrossthe

state,and• meetingwidespreaddemandsforimprovedrailservices

throughoutregionalVictoriaintermsof:• betterservicefrequencyonmostlines• muchimprovedreliability• reducedjourneytime• newlongdistancetrains

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BalancedPopulationGrowth• Victoria’spopulationisexpectedtodoubleto10

millionby2050,with8millionofthosepeopleinMelbourne

• OfficialfiguresshowtheimbalancebetweenMelbourneandtheregionswillworsenby2050withunchangedpolicies

• Faster InterCity trainswouldshrinkdistanceandextendtheareawithaccesstoMelbourneandmajorregionalcentresforemploymentandotherserviceslikehealthandeducation

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RegionalDemandsforTrainServiceReinstatementand/orUpgrading

• RFR,RRLandVLocityinvestmentsdemonstratedthestrongimpactofmodern,faster(160km/hmax)trainservices

• Theseinvestmentsproducedupto300%patronageincreasesandsignificantjourneytimereductions

• ButcommunitiesbeyondRFRgenerallyreceiveservicestandardsestablishedinthe1980s(severalareworse)

• AndthosecommunitiesthatareservedbyRRLgenerallyfacetheproblemsofsuccess,suchasovercrowding

• Therearenow8groupsofCouncilsacrossthestatesetuptoadvocateforbetterpassengerrail.Thisisunprecedentedinrecentmemory.

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TheRFR,RRLandV/Locityinvestments–nowavictimoftheirownsuccess!

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Why InterCity?• Toleadandsupportregionalgrowthanddevelopment• Tosignificantlyimproveconnectednessandsupportneweconomicactivity

• ToexpandtheareaofregionalVictoriawithgoodaccesstojobsandservices

• TosignificantlyimprovecommutingjourneystoMelbourneand,mostimportantly,journeysintoregionalcentres

• TocreateaEuropean-stylerailnetworkwithgreaterserviceintensityandintegrationbetweentransportmodes

• Tohaverailtravelcompetitivewithtraveltimesbycar• Toensurerailjourneysarecomfortableandallowthetimetobeusedproductively.

Usingrailtoshrinkdistanceisnotanewidea,asthis1936VRpostershows

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InterCity –mainfeatures• Faster,regularrailserviceslinkingmajorregionalcentres• AnewstandardgaugelinetoamajornewMelbourneAirporthub

servedbyregionalrailanddesignedforfutureHighSpeedRail

• A 15minuteCBDtoAirportAirTrain every10minutes• NewfastlinesontheGeelong,Ballarat,BendigoandSeymour

routes,progressivelyconvertedtostandardgaugewithfulloperationalsegregationfromthemetropolitanrailnetwork

• FastrunningthroughthemetropolitanareaforGippslandservicesbyDandenonglinetrackquadruplicationandlongpassingloops

• Cross-Country standardgaugerailrouteslinkingregionalcities• Muchimprovedservicereliability,throughmorerobust

infrastructure,newrollingstock,institutionalchangesandgreaterproficiencyinoperationalandengineeringmanagement.

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InterCity - aphasedprogramofinvestments

• Phase1to2026– deliverssignificantbenefitsincapacity,frequency,journeytimeandreliability.CompletesplanningformajorPhase2projects. Requiresinstitutionalchangesandrelativelystraightforwardinfrastructureandserviceimprovements.

• Phase2- 2027to2040 – providesastep-changeincapacityandjourneytimeswithfastertrainsandnewlinesfullysegregatedfromthemetropolitannetwork,includingamajorMelbourneAirporthub.

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WhyheavyrailforAirTrain ?

• Providesaquick,comfortabletripindedicatedrollingstock• AirTrain fromSouthernCrosstotheAirportin15minuteswithonlyaSunshinestop– easyataveragespeed106km/h

• Useswellproven,lowrisk,off-the-shelftechnology• MuchmorethansimplyanAirportrailway– amulti-functioncorridorforreconfiguringtheregionalnetworkwithfullsegregationfromthemetropolitanrailnetwork

• ConstructionstagedtoextendbeyondMelbourneAirporttolinkwiththeBendigolineatClarkefieldandtheOMRreservedcorridortojointheSeymourlineatWallan

• Onlyamodernheavyrailcorridorhasthecapacityandspeedneededforthisapplication.

WhyaSunshineroutefor AirTrain?• It’sallaboutnetworkconnectivity!• UsesexistingrailcorridorfromWestFootscraytoSunshine• Providestrainmaintenanceandstablingfacilitiesonexistingrailland atTottenham

• Sunshinestationwillhavenewsub-surfaceplatformsfortheAirportlineandregionaltrains

• AllBendigo,Seymour,SheppartonandAlbury/WodongatrainswillrunviaSunshineandtheAirport

• SunshinewillprovidequickandeasyinterchangetoGeelong,BallaratlinesandtheMelbourneMetrocorridor

• SouthernCrossStationwillprovideconnectionstoallothermetropolitanlinesandMelbourne’stramnetwork

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InterCity – thewayaheadforVictoria• Regionalrailupgradingshouldbeaprioritydriverto

incentiviseopportunitiesforregionalliving,accesstojobsandmuchimprovedhousingaffordability.

• AirTrain fromtheCBDtoMelbourneAirportshouldbethenextmajorrailprojectafterMelbourneMetro– 8to10yearleadtimemeanscommitmentnowandplanningunderway

• BendigolineandSeymour/Shepparton/AlburylinestobedivertedviaMelbourneAirport

• Metropolitanandregionallinestobeprogressivelysegregated• Regionallinestobeprogressivelyconvertedtostandardgauge• Dandenongraillinetobecomeafourtrackcorridor• Metropolitanlineextensions(Werribee-WyndhamValeand

Cranbourne-Clyde)tobeprioritised

InterCity - anexpresstracktoVictoria’sfuture

QuestionsandDiscussion

ReadthefullInterCity report

www.railfutures.org.au

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