By 2075, the combined population of Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane is projected to exceed 30 million people. The future demand for efficient, high-capacity transport services between major centres on Australia’s east coast will likely exceed the capacity of existing and planned rail, road and aviation services.
Protecting a corridor would significantly increase options for future development of high speed rail infrastructure to meet future demand for inter-city and regional travel.
Purchasing land for corridor protection is a relatively low-risk exercise for governments as acquiring land in the short-term does not preclude changing course in the future.
Modelling by Infrastructure Australia in 2017 estimates the net cost of protecting and acquiring the corridor as $2.8 billion (2016 prices) using a 7% real discount rate.
This proposal proposes to confirm and begin the preservation of a multi-use corridor, based on the corridor set out in the Australian Government’s High Speed Rail Study Phase 2, for a high speed rail link between Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane.
The 2021 Australian Infrastructure Plan outlines that the staged development of major transport corridors and networks can establish a sustainable transport culture and ensure mobility services keep pace with community needs.
The 2021 Australian Infrastructure Plan also outlines that governments can maximise economic, productivity and safety benefits from fast rail, faster rail and high-speed rail investments by investing in the timely preservation of surface corridors and ensuring the cross-border interoperability of projects is advanced in different locations.
The National Faster Rail Agency (NFRA) was established on 1 July 2019 as an Executive Agency within the Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications portfolio.
NFRA provides national leadership by coordinating faster rail policy and research with state and territory governments, industry and the private sector to better align population growth with long term rail investment.
We encourage the NFRA to work closely with state and territory governments on opportunities to preserve corridors and develop rail infrastructure between major cities and key regional centres in order to advance social, economic and population outcomes.