Rail duplication needs to be Gippsland priority

Duplication of the railway line between Bunyip and Longwarry and second platforms at both stations should be at the head of the list of works costing more than $500 million to upgrade Gippsland’s rail infrastructure.

Member for Narracan Gary Blackwood said the BunyipLongwarry section was a major bottleneck on the line and caused many V/Line trains to fall out of sequence and delay them because they then were second place behind metropolitan trains travelling between the city and Pakenham.

The way for the upgrades to regional rail infrastructure across Victoria costing about $1.5 million, and including the Gippsland works, was cleared when the Federal Government announced it would allocate $1.42 billion to the projects.

There had been a stand-off over finance to upgrade all regional rail routes since late April when the Premier Daniel Andrews initially announced them during a visit to Warragul.

At the time it was stated the work was dependent on, what Mr Andrews said, was an agreement for Federal money to be paid to the State under the Commonwealth’s Asset Recycling Initiative relating to the sale of the Port of Melbourne.

Federal Infrastructure and Transport Minister Darren Chester hit back saying he hadn’t been presented with a plan or business case nor seen any commitment of State funds.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s announcement last week of the Federal allocation was widely welcomed in the region, including by Mr Blackwood and Committee for Gippsland chief executive Mary Aldred.

Federal leader of The Nationals Peter Walsh said Mr Chester, who is also the Member for Gippsland, had put country communities “on the right track” after Mr Andrews had left them in limbo when he announced a “rail revival” plan but refused to invest a cent of State money.

Mr Blackwood said that while he “certainly welcomed” last week’s news it should be noted that without the Federal funding Gippsland V/Line travellers would continue to be ignored by the State government.

Ms Aldred said C4G had advocated for improvements to the Gippsland rail line over a long period, including in its 2016 report “Our Region Our Future: Securing an economic future for Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley” and, more recently, in budget submissions to both the Federal and State governments.

She said that without reliable and efficient train services there was a danger people would move away if they had to look further afield for work because of “industry transitioning” in the region.

As well as additional platforms at Bunyip and Longwarry and a second track between the two towns the state government plan includes duplication of some other single-track sections on the Gippsland line, several station upgrades and a new $95 million bridge over the Avon River at Stratford.

Member for Eastern Victoria Harriet Shing, who attended the April announcement in Warragul with Mr Andrews and State Transport Minister Jacinta Allan, said that with funding now confirmed the State Government was moving to determine the timing and delivery of projects.

She said 400 jobs would be created in Gippsland as a result and local jobs and training would be a priority.