Developed as part of the Australian Government’s Faster Rail Prospectus process, the North Coast Connect proposal is designed to provide a faster rail connection between Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. This will include a new dedicated track along the existing North Coast Line between Brisbane and Beerwah, and a new rail corridor to connect coastal population centres including Maroochydore and Caloundra to the North Coast Line.

The business case was accepted for Infrastructure Australia's evaluation on 18 August 2020.

On 8 December 2020 Infrastructure Australia concluded its independent evaluation of the North Coast Connect project and determined it will not include the project on the Infrastructure Australia Priority List at this time.