RAYLINK CONSULTING GEELONG FAST RAIL LINE HIGH LEVEL TECHNICAL REPORT Prepared by Raylink Consulting APRIL 2018 Table of Contents 1. Purpose of Report .......................................................................................................... 3 2. The Geelong Rail Line.................................................................................................... 3 3. Background .................................................................................................................... 0 4. Report Overview............................................................................................................. 1 5. Fast Rail Alignment Options ......................................................................................... 3 6. Regional Rail Link Option ............................................................................................... 5 6.1 Features of Regional Rail Link Option ......................................................................... 5 6.1.1 Southern Cross Station - Regional Rail Link Option .............................................. 0 6.1.2 Southern Cross to West Footscray section - Regional Rail Link Option ................. 0 6.1.3 West Footscray to East Sunshine section - Regional Rail Link Option .................. 0 6.1.4 East Sunshine section to West Sunshine - Regional Rail Link Option ................... 0 6.1.5 West Sunshine to Deer Park section - Regional Rail Link Option .......................... 1 6.1.6 Deer Park Junction to Manor Junction section - Regional Rail Link Option............ 2 6.1.7 Manor Junction to Geelong section - Regional Rail Link Option ............................ 3 6.2 Estimated Cost of Regional Rail Link Option ............................................................... 3 6.3 Regional Rail Link Option Speed/Travel Time Issues .................................................. 5 6.3.1 Speed Related Issues - Regional Rail Link Option ................................................ 5 6.3.2 Train Simulation Assessment - Regional Rail Link Option ..................................... 5 7. Western Freeway Option ................................................................................................ 7 7.1 Features of Western Freeway Option .......................................................................... 7 7.1.1 Southern Cross Station – Western Freeway Option .............................................. 0 7.1.2 Southern Cross to Geelong Road Brooklyn – Western Freeway Option ................ 0 7.1.3 Geelong Road Brooklyn to Somerville Road - Western Freeway Option ............... 0 7.1.4 Somerville Road to Western Freeway Derrimut - Western Freeway Option ........... 1 7.1.5 Western Freeway to Regional Rail Link Truganina - Western Freeway Option ...... 1 7.1.6 Regional Rail Link to Manor section - Western Freeway Option ............................ 2 7.1.7 Manor Junction to Geelong section - Western Freeway Option ............................. 2 7.2 Estimated Cost of Western Freeway Option. ............................................................... 2 7.3 Western Freeway Option Speed/Travel Time Issues ................................................... 4 7.3.1 Speed Related Issues – Western Freeway Option ................................................ 4 7.3.2 Train Simulation Assessment – Western Freeway Option ..................................... 4 8. Geelong Road Option ..................................................................................................... 6 8.1 Features of Geelong Road Option ............................................................................... 6 8.1.1 Southern Cross Station – Geelong Road Option ................................................... 0 8.1.2 Southern Cross to Geelong Road Brooklyn – Geelong Road Option ..................... 0 8.1.3 Geelong Road Brooklyn to Just West of Princes Freeway Western Ring Road Interchange Altona - Geelong Road Option .................................................................... 0 1 8.1.4 West of Princes Freeway Western Ring Road Interchange to Just East of Kororoit Creek Road Altona - Geelong Road Option ................................................................... 0 8.1.5 Just East of Kororoit Creek Road to Just Beyond The Old Geelong Road – Sayers Road Intersection at Williams Landing - Geelong Road Option ...................................... 0 8.1.6 Old Geelong Road – Sayers Road Intersection to Forsyth Road Overpass at Williams Landing - Geelong Road Option....................................................................... 1 8.1.7 Forsyth Road Overpass to Manor Junction - Geelong Road Option ...................... 1 8.1.8 Manor Junction to Geelong section - Geelong Road Option .................................. 2 8.2 Estimated Cost of Geelong Road Option ..................................................................... 2 8.3 Geelong Road Option Speed/Travel Time Issues ........................................................ 4 8.3.1 Speed Related Issues – Geelong Road Option ..................................................... 4 8.3.2 Train Simulation Assessment – Geelong Road Option .......................................... 4 9. The Fishermans Bend/Newport alternative ................................................................... 6 10. Comparison of Options ............................................................................................... 7 11. Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 7 12. Next Steps .................................................................................................................... 7 2 1. Purpose of Report The purpose of this report is to provide a preliminary and very high-level assessment of the practical options for a Geelong Fast Line that could be potentially developed as a private/public partnership. In commissioning this report, the client, the City of Greater Geelong, emphasized the need for a preliminary technical assessment of a fast rail solution or options which would represent the least cost while delivering transformative travel times. Accordingly, new capital investment has been balanced with possible ways of enhancing the existing rail infrastructure. Such a project has multiple complementary infrastructure project benefits: It benefits Melbourne planning and development by “shrinking” the existing distance and enhancing access to more affordable land value by reducing typical Melbourne-Geelong commuting time by up to 30 minutes; It benefits Geelong directly, but also places a much larger region around Geelong within range of a one-hour commute to Melbourne; it provides direct benefits by freeing up capacity on Melbourne’s Metro public transport system; and 2. The Geelong Rail Line The following map shows the existing Geelong rail line. 3 Figure 1. – Map of the existing Geelong rail line 0 3. Background To incentivise the development of Geelong and its surrounds, to reduce the enormous growth pressures on Melbourne’s western suburbs, a much faster, more reliable and more comfortable rail service between Geelong and the Melbourne CBD will be a critical pre- requisite. Rail investment is not keeping up with demand growth in the Geelong corridor. Regional Rail Link (RRL) delivered new rail lines in 2015, from Southern Cross to Sunshine, segregated from suburban trains, and from Deer Park to Manor Junction via Wyndham Vale and Tarneit. This has improved the service frequency to Geelong but, being 8 km longer, has not improved journey times which mostly remain at about one hour or more. To this end, a Geelong Fast Rail Line will be required. This will allow greater service frequency with a suitable alignment to achieve a 40-minute or better journey time for express services. This will transform Geelong as a regional centre and have a ripple effect through its hinterland. For Geelong, the gains from RRL have been short-lived as metropolitan travel demand rapidly grows along the new route through Tarneit and Wyndham Vale and is starting to overwhelm regional trains designed for longer trips. The RRL route through Tarneit will therefore need to become an electrified Metro route in the short term with an increasingly intensive suburban service and additional intermediate stations. To enable regional trains to and from Geelong and beyond to operate without being impeded by suburban trains, quadruplication between Deer Park and Wyndham Vale to provide two non-electrified express lines will also become essential in the short term. There is an option to also use this infrastructure for the Geelong Fast Rail Line. Subsequently, Werribee suburban services will also need to be extended to Wyndham Vale via a new link, interchanging with Geelong stopping trains at Black Forest Road. Related factors are that Avalon Airport should be suitably linked to a new station on the existing corridor between Little River and Lara. At Corio, the present poorly patronised station should be replaced with a major new Parkway station near the junction of the Princes Freeway and Geelong Ring Road, with potential to provide up to 3,000 park and ride spaces, ample bicycle parking, and a major urban bus interchange. Before 2030, RRL capacity will be fully utilised from Southern Cross to Sunshine due to demand growth from the western suburbs and the Ballarat and Bendigo lines. This would trigger a need for a separate fast line to exit the metropolitan area