Coalition’s budget for rail slow to roll out

THE single biggest commitment to the Geelong region in the federal budget may be slow to get out of the station, with almost all of the nearly $3 billion for better rail services not scheduled to be delivered for another four years.

This is at odds with the optimistic forecast by the federal Liberal Party, when it made the pre-budget announcement of $2 billion last month, of works starting within as little as 18 months.

The federal Liberals say $2 billion will go towards works (alongside a hoped matching amount from the state Labor government) to reduce travel times between Geelong and Melbourne to as low as 32 minutes.

Just before the budget, the Morrison Government also announced another $700 million towards duplicating the railway line between South Geelong and Waurn Ponds stations.

However, the budget papers show none of the $2 billion for fast rail is earmarked to be spent in either this financial year or in the 2020-2021 year.

Instead, the first $20 million will be spent in 2021-22, and a further $30 million in 2022-23.

Similarly, of the $700 million the federal Coalition is putting towards the Waurn Ponds duplication, only about $50 million will be spent over the next four years.

State Labor (which is carrying out a $150 million business case on the fast rail project) and federal Labor were quick to jump on the figures, with South Barwon MP Darren Cheeseman describing the Morrison Government as “all talk and no action in respect of Victorian infrastructure needs”.

“This announcement is just a hoax on Geelong and the Surf Coast, and does not deliver a fair share of funding to this important project.”

In federal Parliament last week, Corangamite Liberal federal member Sarah Henderson said her government was “incredibly proud of our commitment to fast rail”.

“I call on the Victorian government to provide the $2 billion in the matching funding that we need to get on with this project; to expedite the business plan, this $50 million that it’s allocated for its business plan for fast rail; and to bring forward the construction timetable of the rail duplication project so we can get on with this project.”