Premier Daniel Andrews will waste $50 million on a pre-election “stunt” to fool voters into thinking he can deliver fast trains between Geelong and Melbourne, according to the opposition.
The money for a fast-rail “study” would only line the pockets of consultants without delivering service improvements, said public transport shadow minister David Davis.
Scoffing at this week’s funding announcement, he questioned how the Andrews Government could now promise a dramatic improvement in Geelong train services after delivering only declines over the past three years.
“Daniel Andrews will be long retired by the time anything happens on this project,” Mr Andrews said.
“Victorians should not be fooled by Daniel Andrews’ trickery – he won’t give them anything for decades.
“The reliability and punctuality of train services to Geelong have declined over the last three years. How can anyone expect Daniel Andrews to build a faster train service when he can’t even run the current service properly?
“It’s doubtful Daniel Andrews could even run a steam train on time.”
Mr Davis promoted the coalition’s promise of $633 million for new VLocity-style trains as plan to “immediately” improve regional rail services.
The government announced on Thursday that the funding “kick-started work for a high-speed rail link between Geelong and Melbourne” with trains reaching speeds up to 300km/h.
The $50 million would pay for “detailed investigations of fast-rail infrastructure upgrades, costs and train requirements”, the government said.
“This vital work will help identify a preferred option and pave the way for full business case development.”
“A number of options will be investigated including the possible electrification to Geelong along the existing rail corridor as well as new dedicated high-speed rail alignments with new rolling stock,” the government said.
“A fast rail link from Geelong to Melbourne would slash travel times between Victoria’s capital and its second biggest city as well as creating a rail pathway to Melbourne Airport.
“The Labor Government wants a future Melbourne Airport Link that integrates into the existing rail network. This would maximise the benefits of the link, unlocking capacity in Melbourne’s booming west and north and providing better services for regional Victoria.”
