How long is the Melbourne Metro Tunnel going to be?

The Metro Tunnel (sometimes also known as the Melbourne Metro Rail Project or the Metro Rail Capacity Project) is a metropolitan rail infrastructure project currently under construction in Melbourne, Australia. It includes the construction of twin 9-kilometre rail tunnels between South Kensington station (north west of the Melbourne City Centre) and South Yarra (in the south east) with five new underground stations. The southern portal for the tunnel is to be located to the south of South Yarra station. As a result, the tunnel will connect the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines with the Sunbury line, and allow these lines to bypass Flinders Street station and the City Loop while still stopping in the Melbourne central business district.

Metro Tunnel

The project will allow for the operational separation of various existing lines and increase the capacity of the rail network to metro-style frequencies. The project is part of the PTV Network Development Plan.

In February 2015, the State government established the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority, with $40 million in funding, to oversee planning of the project and $1.5 billion to commence land and property acquisitions and detailed route investigation, and a further $3 billion in funding was committed. Most of the project would be built as a public-private partnership, with private sector investors funding much of the estimated $9 billion to $11 billion cost upfront. Early enabling works commenced in late 2016. In late 2017, sections of the Melbourne central business district, including City Square and parts of Swanston Street, were closed to enable construction of the tunnel and stations. The project was originally expected to be completed in 2026, but has now been revised to late 2025.

Melbourne's original development at a time when railway technology began to emerge as a feasible and efficient mode of transit led to a symbiotic relationship between the CBD and the rail network which grew to surround it. An almost purely radial system of lines, developed largely before 1930, linked the growing suburbs to the economic hub of the city centre, producing a system which supported a daily flow of passengers into and out of the city to work. Despite the increasingly car-oriented developments of the mid-20th century, the suburban rail lines in Melbourne continued to discourage any decentralisation of employment, leaving the city unusually dependent on its central core when compared to cities of similar size globally.

The first underground rail line to be built in Melbourne was the City Loop, which began construction in 1971 and opened gradually between 1981 and 1985. Among its aims were to reduce pressure on Flinders Street station by distributing passengers to three additional stations in the city centre, and to improve the capacity of the railway network's central core by eliminating the need for trains to change direction after terminating at Flinders Street. However, it was not entirely successful in achieving these aims: the four tunnels of the Loop proved to be a capacity constraint on the ten main lines entering the CBD, and the peculiarities of operating four single-direction balloon loops meant that inner-city rapid transit was difficult for passengers. At the same time, the Loop consumed much of the available capital available for investment in the city's rail system; as a result, the extensions to the outer suburban network which had been envisaged as a succession to the Loop itself did not eventuate. Meanwhile, patronage on the network had entered a long period of decline, which culminated in the Lonie Report of 1980 recommending the closure of several lines.

The need for an overhaul of the existing commuter rail network was first discussed in the early 2000s as unprecedented population growth began to place significant pressure on existing rail infrastructure and constraints on the inner core of the network as it approached capacity. Other problems faced by the network in the first decade of the 21st century included inefficient operations which had developed during years of low patronage, and a loss of corporate memory, caused in part by the privatisation of rail services in the late 1990s, which limited the flexibility of planners in dealing with the burgeoning passenger numbers. Consequently, a large number of services were experiencing major overcrowding in peak periods. A series of planning documents released during the early 2000s, including "Melbourne 2030" (2002), "Linking Melbourne" (2004) and "Meeting Our Transport Challenges" (2006) identified that significant capacity constraints existed in the central core and on the Dandenong corridor, but did not propose any significant capital works in the city centre, instead suggesting that the issues could be resolved by relatively minor operational changes and construction of a third track to Dandenong.

Outside the state government, support grew for a more substantial augmentation of the rail network, with many such ideas based on new underground lines through the CBD. In 2005, "The Age" reported that it had received a number of proposals from planning experts and engineers for rail "loops and arcs" in the central city, and publicised a plan published by Monash University professor Graham Currie for a tunnel between the University of Melbourne to the north of the city and South Yarra station to the south-east. Currie's plan also envisaged extensive improvements to the Melbourne tram network, including upgrading lines along St Kilda Road and Chapel Street to light rail standards. In 2006, the state government considered a plan to construct a combined road and rail tunnel beneath the Yarra River to provide an alternative to the West Gate Bridge, but the idea was deemed unfeasible.

By 2007, the planned third track to Dandenong was effectively abandoned, with no money provided for the project in that year's state budget, and opposition growing from the Public Transport Users Association and others. Later that year, it emerged that train operator Connex and coordinating authority Metlink were among stakeholders encouraging the government to consider a proposal similar to Currie's, but extended to Footscray in the city's west. Melbourne City Council, on the other hand, proposed a tunnel conceptually similar to the Currie plan, but running from Jewell station in the north to Windsor in the south-east.

In 2008, British transport planner Sir Rod Eddington handed down the findings of a report into Melbourne's east-west transport needs, following a commission by the Brumby Government. The Eddington Report recommended two key projects in the city centre: an East West Link road tunnel providing an alternative cross-town route to the West Gate Bridge, and a rail tunnel from Footscray to Caulfield via the CBD. According to Eddington, the tunnel would increase the capacity of the central rail network by removing some trains from the City Loop, allowing future extensions to the suburban lines. In December that year, the project was incorporated into the government's Victorian Transport Plan, to be built in two stages: the first from Footscray to St Kilda Road, and the second along the rest of the route.

Following the 2010 Victorian election, the newly elected Baillieu Government abandoned the Brumby transport plan, and announced that each of the projects would be individually reviewed, some by a newly created Public Transport Development Authority. Then, in its 2012 budget, the government announced a revised version of the tunnel plan: a "Melbourne Metro" from South Kensington to South Yarra along a similar city centre route to Eddington's original proposal. The revised project included five underground stations, and was submitted to Infrastructure Australia where it was deemed "ready to proceed" and listed as the highest-priority infrastructure project in Melbourne. A business case was quickly developed based on the constraints of the existing rail system, which was rapidly approaching its maximum capacity. The Department of Transport commenced geotechnical drillings and route investigations.

A dispute between the federal government and state government over the funding for the tunnel intensified in 2013 with the approach of that year's federal election. The state budget in early May revealed that none of the $50 million in planning money allocated the previous year had been spent, with new premier Denis Napthine deferring the project in favour of the East West Link. Despite this, with the release of the federal budget a week later, the government of Prime Minister Julia Gillard committed $3 billion to the project on the condition that the state match the contribution. The remaining money was to be raised by a public-private partnership with the possibility that the contractor could take over running of the line in addition to its construction. However, federal opposition leader Tony Abbott declared that if he was elected to lead a government that year, no Commonwealth money would be spent on urban passenger rail, and that any commitment to the Melbourne Metro project would be revoked.

Meanwhile, Public Transport Victoria's Network Development Plan Metropolitan Rail (NDPMR), released in early 2013, identified the Metro Tunnel as the centrepiece of a 20-year strategy for improving the Melbourne suburban rail network. CEO Ian Dobbs, launching the plan, argued that any expansion of the system was "impossible" without vastly improved capacity in the core of the network. The NDPMR envisaged the tunnel's construction taking place in a wave of major development from 2017 to 2022, enabling the segregation of the rail system into four independently-operated lines, each with their own routes through the CBD. It also outlined a service plan for the tunnel, proposing an initial peak hour flow of 8 trains per hour in each direction.

In February the following year, the state government announced that it was considering alternative alignments for the tunnel, because of concerns that cut and cover construction in Swanston Street in the central city would result in massive disruption to traffic and retail activity for an extended period of time. Then, at the launch of its 2014 budget in May, the Napthine government announced that the Metro Tunnel project would be abandoned and replaced with an alternative proposal called "Melbourne Rail Link". The MRL route consisted of a tunnel from South Yarra to Southern Cross via Kings Domain and Fishermans Bend, where it would join existing City Loop tunnels reconfigured for bidirectional traffic. Furthermore, the government promised that the realignment would enable a Melbourne Airport rail link to be constructed from Southern Cross at the same time. Ultimately, the reconfiguration of the rail network was to have produced similar operational outcomes as the Melbourne Metro plan, with a Sunbury-Dandenong corridor operating directly between Southern Cross and Flinders Street in both directions, but with an additional end-to-end line from Frankston to Ringwood via the new tracks.

According to government ministers, the Melbourne Rail Link offered greater capacity increases and less disruption during the construction phase than existing plans. However, it was heavily criticised, including by Lord Mayor of Melbourne Robert Doyle, who described the route change as a potential "100-year catastrophe" because of its failure to service the Parkville medical and research precinct. Furthermore, the government revealed in the days following the budget that it had not produced a business case for its plan, and that the decision had been taken primarily on the basis of a "common sense" need to service its urban redevelopment project at Fishermans Bend. Other concerns emerged in the months following the budget, with experts publicly questioning whether the Napthine government had committed sufficient funding, and whether the proposed tunnels could be engineered to successfully avoid the main Melbourne sewer.

By November, with the state election approaching, the rail tunnel had become a major point of contention in the campaign, with the government apparently prioritising the East West Link (EWL) road tunnel, and the Labor opposition promising that "under no circumstances" would it build the EWL if elected. As an alternative, Labor proposed reinstating the original Metro Tunnel plan, which retained the support of senior public servants in the Department of Transport, Planning and Local Infrastructure. According to this analysis, the original tunnel route performed substantially better than the EWL in a cost-benefits analysis, but no such calculation had been performed for the new Melbourne Rail Link.

On the eve of the election, it emerged that the Abbott federal government had redirected $3 billion in funding to the EWL, and would refuse to allow it to be used for the Melbourne Metro project instead, despite mounting pressure to reconsider his intransigence. A Labor state government under Premier Daniel Andrews was elected the following day, and immediately set about cancelling contracts for the EWL. At the same time, however, new Treasurer Tim Pallas conceded that it would be "difficult" to deliver the Metro Tunnel given the complexities of the funding dispute.

In February 2015, the Andrews government announced $40 million in immediate funding to establish the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority, in order to commence detailed planning work along the original route, and promised a further $300 million in its upcoming budget. It also revealed that a $3 billion line of credit established to fund the EWL would be redirected to the Melbourne Metro project. A timeline was provided, with construction expected to commence in 2018 and the tunnel to be open in 2026. Meanwhile, however, the federal government continued to refuse to fund the project, which led some observers to describe Andrews' commitment as a significant political risk.

On 15 April 2015, the government announced that the MMRA had selected a route along Swanston Street as the preferred option for the project. The announcement revealed that routes under Elizabeth Street and Russell Street had been considered but were rejected on the basis of engineering difficulties and lack of connectivity respectively. For similar reasons, the route selected along Swanston Street was a shallow tunnel above the City Loop and CityLink tunnels, at a depth of and therefore to be constructed using cut-and-cover methods. The announcement was criticised by representatives of city retailers, who claimed that the disruption would cause enormous damage to their businesses; the government acknowledged massive changes to city access but assured retailers they would be treated fairly. Further concerns about the proposed route emerged some days later when it emerged the tunnel would not connect to South Yarra station, and that Pakenham and Cranbourne services would bypass the station when the tunnel opened.

Discussions about the funding of the project continued into late April. The state government acknowledged that the Abbott federal government would not make any contribution to the project, but stated that it remained "hopeful" a future federal government would change the policy. Towards the end of the month, the Andrews government announced that $1.5 billion would be allocated in the upcoming state Budget for the full cost of pre-construction works, land and property acquisition and detailed route investigations, on top of the already announced money for planning. Among the work funded was drilling 140 bore holes to establish ground conditions along the route. However, questions remained about the state government's capacity to fund the remainder of the project, and it was reported that no business case had been completed, despite this being Labor's key objection to the Melbourne Rail Link plan when in opposition. A levy on land tax for commercial properties benefiting from the tunnel, similar to that used on the City Loop and on the contemporary London Crossrail project, was proposed as one possible solution. At the same time the funding announcement was made, MMRA announced it had appointed technical and planning advisors for the project.

After the state Budget in May, details gradually emerged of the revised business case for the tunnel, including specific routes and tunnel options. The government's announcement that an interchange to the existing station at South Yarra because of its expense was heavily criticised by opposition parties and public transport advocates. Invetigative drilling along Swanston Street began in early June, and in the middle of that month, the state government announced negotiations with the financiers of the cancelled EWL had concluded, enabling the $3 billion credit facility to be redirected to the Metro Tunnel. In August, tunnel boring machines were announced as the preferred engineering option for the sections of the project under the Yarra River. The September federal Liberal leadership spill, which saw Malcolm Turnbull replace Abbott as prime minister, led to new hope for federal funding of the project when Turnbull announced he would consider all transport projects on their merits.

In October 2015 the government announced it had abandoned earlier plans to run the tunnel just metres beneath Swanston Street and above the existing City Loop tunnels and instead place parts of the project 40 metres underground between CBD North and CBD South stations. The decision was made to reduce disruption to trams and traders on Swanston Street and avoid removing critical utilities, such as telecommunication lines, from beneath the street. The cost of such a change was disputed, with the government claiming the additional tunnelling expense would be met by the savings of services remaining in place, but opposition parties arguing the change could be up to $1 billion more expensive.

With the key engineering details in place, the scope of the project and its associated disruptions gradually became public. The government first announced in October it would compulsorily acquire the properties of 63 households and 31 businesses at several locations on the tunnel route. Later, in November, road closures for up to five years were announced near construction sites, and specific station designs were released for the first time. The first package of works, a $300 million contract for site preparation and services relocation, was opened for tenders by MMRA on 25 November.

Early in 2016, geotechnical drillling was extended to the Yarra River, as political arguments continued over the Metro Tunnel's funding arrangements. Having selected a public-private partnership model based on long-term maintenance and commercial opportunities for investment, and with a new business case released publicly, the state government continued to request a significant federal contribution, but the Turnbull government said it would not consider the project until it had been independently analysed by Infrastructure Australia. Despite the ongoing dispute, a shortlist of bidders was announced in late February for the early works package, and the construction timeline continued to suggest a 2016 start to works.

Eventually, in the May state budget, premier Andrews and his treasurer Tim Pallas declared that the state would bear the entire cost of the project in lieu of federal funds, using a combination of increased revenues from a strong property market, and an increase to the net debt of the state over the following decade.

In June 2016, John Holland was awarded a $324 million contract which includes the excavation of 35 metre deep open shafts adjacent to Swanston Street to enable the underground construction of the two new city stations, and the relocation of up to 100 subterranean utilities. Utility relocations started in July 2016. Ultimately, however, the federal budget released a week later included $857 billion redirected from other infrastructure projects to the tunnel; the funds did not represent additional support to Victoria but rather a reallocation of existing contributions.

A shortlist of preferred bidders for the project's main contract, the "tunnel and stations" public-private partnership, was released in August, along with further details of the MMRA's recommended engineering solutions. The bidders were three consortia composed of engineering, construction and finance coompanies: Continuum Victoria, consisting Acciona Infrastructure, Ferrovial Agroman, Honeywell, Downer Rail & Plenary Group; Moving Melbourne Together, made up of Pacific Partnerships, CPB Contractors, Ghella, Salini Impregilo, Serco & Macquarie Capital; and Cross Yarra Partnership, including Lend Lease, John Holland, Bouygues & Capella Capital. At the same time, the MMRA exercised its powers of compulsory acquisition to acquire City Square from the City of Melbourne, well head of the original schedule.

Over the following months, further details of the construction process were made public, including long-term road closures and the precise location of construction sites. The revelations included the MMRA's concerns about the impact of tunneling on the structural integrity of CBD buildings, including Federation Square and St Paul's Cathedral.

On 15 January 2017, works officially began on the project, with the partial closure of A'Beckett and Franklin streets in the CBD. Local media noted that the commencement marked almost precisely a decade since the project's inception. The news was followed by Infrastructure Australia releasing a positive assessment of the project's business case and urging the federal government to contribute funding to the tunnel.

Meanwhile, a case was lodged in the Supreme Court of Victoria by protest groups in an attempt to force the government and MMRA to reroute the project around the St Kilda Road precinct. Objections to the tunnel's construction were strengthened in February, when the federal government implemented an emergency heritage protection order for the precinct, preventing the MMRA from removing around 100 trees. The Victorian government decried the move as a political stunt, and insisted that the project would go ahead as planned. At the same time, the Liberal state opposition attempted to grant the City of Stonnington planning powers over the project with a motion in state parliament, in order to force the inclusion of a South Yarra station connection, but eventually withdrew when sufficient support could not be secured in the Legislative Council.

A major milestone was reached in mid-April when City Square was fenced off for the commencement of construction and staging works. A few days later, the government announced that bids for the major construction contract had been received from each of the consortia selected on the previous year's shortlist.

Cross Yarra Partnership, led by Lendlease, was named as the "preferred bidder" for the construction contract in July. The station designs presented by the consortium were released publicly, as well as details of connections to existing stations and streetscapes. Shortly afterwards, Bombardier was announced as the successful tenderer for the signalling and communication systems contract, and supplied plans to build signal control centres in Sunshine and Dandenong. The contract, including a rollout of high-capacity signalling (HCS) between Watergardens and Dandenong, was the first awarded in Australia for HCS implementation on existing rail lines.

At the end of August, the state government launched a public naming competition for the tunnel's five new stations, to replace the working names used since the project's genesis. The competition provoked a wide public response, with arguments over whether the names should reflect geographic location, cultural heritage, or tongue-in-cheek references such as Station McStationface. By the time the competition closed at the end of October, more than 50,000 submissions had been made, and the project had gained international attention with author George R. R. Martin commenting on suggestions that the stations be named after locations from his Game of Thrones series of books. However, the government emphasised that the competition was not to be judged by popular demand but by a panel of experts.

The selected names for the stations – North Melbourne, Parkville, State Library, Town Hall and Anzac – were announced in November, with the government deciding on "common sense" options based on geographic location and ease of pronunciation. The names were welcomed by public transport advocates, but the plan to rename the existing North Melbourne station to West Melbourne was questioned as a source of potential confusion.

The public profile of tunnel works increased through the end of 2017, with Lord Mayor Robert Doyle complaining that the City of Melbourne's pest controllers were being overwhelmed by rats disturbed by underground works, and a public viewing platform established at the City Square building site. On 18 December, the state government announced that it had finalised its contract with Cross Yarra Partnership, with a value of some $6 billion. Opposition leader Matthew Guy immediately signalled his intention to bring the dispute over the tunnel's design to the 2018 state election, writing to CYP to indicate that he would seek to include a station at South Yarra should his party win government the following year.

Despite ongoing legal battles, tree felling in the St Kilda Road precinct began in February 2018, marking the commencement of significant construction in the area and the consortium's commitment to its design solution for the tunnel. Then, on 20 February, the state government released the tunnel contracts, and announced that the original completion date of 2026 had been brought forward to a new target of 2025. The annoucnement also included a response to the Opposition's intention to renegotiate the design, with Premier Daniel Andrews claiming it would mean a two-year delay to the overall project.

In April, further concerns about the tunnel's impact on buildings near its route emerged, with managers of the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre in Parkville and the Manchester Unity Building in the CBD, along with the University of Melbourne, making submissions to the MMRA suggesting their properties were at serious risk of damage from construction and operation vibration. The authority responded that it would work with stakeholders to minimise impacts and ensure the project did not produce and adverse impacts. In the same month, the state government announced an upgrade of South Yarra station separate from the Metro Tunnel, in order to address the concerns about its lack of connectivity to the project.

Following a series of announcements of major rail projects prior to the state budget in May, the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority was renamed Rail Projects Victoria (RPV) to reflect its involvement in projects outside the Metro Tunnel.

Final designs and concept images for the new stations were released in May 2018, using materials and features intended to reflect the character of the five station precincts. CYP, RPV and Minister for Public Transport Jacinta Allan expressed their hope that the designs would be accepted and integrated into the Melbourne landscape as new cultural icons following their completion. Then, in June, the state government released modelling demonstrating the project's contribution to improved accessbility in the CBD, with travel time savings from virtually all parts of Greater Melbourne to the Parkville and St Kilda Road areas served by the Metro Tunnel.

The tunnel is anticipated to be operational by the end of 2025.

The project will consist of two 9-kilometre rail tunnels between South Kensington and South Yarra via the CBD with five new underground stations. The line will run from the north-west to the south-east and link the Sunbury line with the Cranbourne/Pakenham line.

While the rail tunnel is the centrepiece of the project, further works will also be carried out on a new third turnback platform at West Footscray station and complement existing projects underway on the Dandenong line, to create four'metro-style' lines which each run independently of each other. This includes the provision of high speed signalling, level crossing removals, track and station improvements and additional train stabling facilities. In addition, High Capacity Metro Trains will be procured to add further capacity to the network.

The project involves construction of five new underground stations:

North Melbourne station is to be located near the intersection of Arden and Laurens Streets in North Melbourne. It is planned to allow for urban renewal of the formerly industrial suburb, and is expected to serve some 25,000 residents once complete. The existing North Melbourne station will be renamed West Melbourne.

Parkville station is to be located on the intersection of Grattan Street and Royal Parade in Parkville, in proximity to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and Melbourne University. The station will relieve pressure on north-south tram routes and the congested 401 bus service between North Melbourne station and the university/hospital precinct. New tram stops are to be constructed as part of the project allowing for seamless tram and train interchanges. The station will service the busy hospital and research precinct, including the Victorian Comprehensive Cancer Centre. The station is expected to service 60,000 passengers each day in 2031.

State Library station is to be located on the intersection of Swanston and La Trobe Streets in the Melbourne CBD above the existing Melbourne Central station. This will allow for interchange opportunities between stations and existing lines and relieve pressure on Swanston Street tram routes. The station will service the northern end of the CBD, as well as the State Library of Victoria and RMIT University. The line will continue under Swanston Street running below the existing City Loop tunnels. The station will serve up to 40,000 passengers once complete.

Town Hall station is to be located on the corner of Swanston and Flinders Streets, with direct connections to Flinders Street station, adding further relief to tram services and servicing the southern end of the CBD. The station will be near St Paul's Cathedral, the Arts Precinct, Southbank and Federation Square and have exits on Collins Street. The line will proceed south running below the Yarra River and the Burnley and Domain tunnels. The station is expected to serve some 55,000 passengers during peak periods.

Anzac station is to be located on St Kilda Road and Park Streets adjacent to the Domain Interchange, with interchange opportunities with existing St Kilda Road tram services. The station will service the Shrine of Remembrance, the busy St Kilda Road office precinct, the Royal Botanic Gardens and Melbourne Grammar School. The station is expected to serve approximately 14,500 passengers during peak periods.

The primary stated aim of the project is to increase capacity within the inner core of the metropolitan network, as well as improving reliability and efficiency. It aims to accomplish this by creating a single, end-to-end metropolitan line between Sunshine in the west and Dandenong in the south-east, linking the existing Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines and providing them with a dedicated city centre route. Because this re-routing removes services from two City Loop tunnels, more capacity will theoretically be available for the Werribee, Williamstown, Craigieburn, Upfield, Frankston and Sandringham lines. According to official project estimates, the result is a total capacity increase of 39,000 passengers in the city centre for each peak period.

However, the need for a new tunnel to increase capacity has been subject to criticism that capacity on the existing network is under utilised or hamstrung by operational inefficiencies, since the project was originally proposed in Eddington's report. Paul Mees in 2008 noted that the claim the new tunnel would allow 40 extra trains per hour through the city should be compared to an increase of 56 trains per hour by increasing line capacity to 24 trains per hour per line (80% of the theoretical 30 trains per hour allowed by the current signalling system), reducing dwell times and other efficiencies such as terminating some trains at Flinders Street station rather than Southern Cross station. Mees also criticised the proposal for absorbing rail investment at the expense of extending the network at its periphery.

On the other hand, transport economist Chris Hale has argued that while the capacity increase offered by the tunnel is real and probably more significant than that offered by incremental upgrades to the existing network, the project is the product of poor planning processes in the Victorian transport bureacracy and consequently reflects a "single-issue" approach to infrastructure which is inconsistent with contemporary best practice. Hale contends that the tunnel's route, which reinforces existing transport networks and focuses on the inner city as the single connection point of all transport, exemplifies outmoded thinking and, therefore, achieves its primary aims while failing to accomplish more extensive benefits for a similar cost.

Ultimately, the business case for the Metro Tunnel considered high-capacity signalling and other network upgrades as alternatives to the proposed route. It concluded that, when compared to the tunnel, upgrading to HCS would produce inferior outcomes because of its limited capacity benefits and its failure to integrate improvement of the existing network with service to new parts of the central city. Additionally, the business case noted that by making incremental upgrades to the rail system without substantially altering its structure, the opportunity for more reliable operations as a result of fully segregated lines would be lost.

With the proposed route expected to run directly under Swanston Street and towards the south-eastern suburbs, the project will provide much needed relief to existing and overcrowded tram services that run from St Kilda Road into the CBD. Currently, St Kilda Road is the busiest tram thoroughfare in the world, with up to 10 tram routes running into the CBD via Swanston Street. The Melbourne Metro is expected to relieve this pressure by allowing commuters to catch the train into the Domain Interchange and CBD from either the north-west or south-eastern suburbs, avoiding already congested tram routes. In particular, many of the existing tram routes that run through St Kilda Road terminate at Melbourne University, which will be more easily accessible from the nearby Parkville station when the Melbourne Metro is complete.

Concerns existed over expected disruption along the Swanston Street corridor, with former Premier Denis Napthine controversially describing the alignment of the tunnel as akin to the Berlin Wall, which would "tear the city in half for up to two years". However, changes to engineering and construction plans indicate that tunneling, rather than the 'cut and cover' method of construction, will be employed. Minimal disruption for trams, pedestrians and traders along Swanston Street is thus expected.

In 2012, Public Transport Victoria, the body charged with planning and coordination of public transport services in Victoria, released the Metropolitan Network Development Plan. It emphasised the need for the project as a precursor for other heavy rail expansion projects, given current limitations on existing inner city infrastructure to cope with additional services running into the inner part of the network. In particular rail lines to Doncaster, Melbourne Airport and Rowville require additional inner core capacity to enable services to run on those lines into the CBD.

The project is expected to employ up to 3,500 people during peak construction.

The current scope of the project has ruled out integration with South Yarra station, meaning it will be bypassed by trains using the new tunnel. This would prevent passengers using the tunnel transferring from the Dandenong and Frankston lines to the Sandringham line. Pressure from the State Opposition and the Greens to include the station in the tunnel's design have gone unheeded. The Melbourne Metro Rail Authority has defended the plan, saying the economic case for integration is poor, requiring the building of a new hub and the acquisition of 114 properties including part of The Jam Factory at a cost of an extra $1 billion; a business case estimate indicates a return of only 20c for every dollar spent on the station. Integration of South Yarra station into the project has been the subject of lobbying as a requirement for federal funding.

A significant point of contention has been the relative cost of the project and the capacity of the State to afford up to $11 billion. The former Abbott Federal Government has specifically ruled out funding urban rail projects across the country, limiting funding options for the Melbourne Metro project and placing pressure on the State Government to fund the project with a mix of debt and private business investment. While funding allocated by the Abbott Government for the now-scrapped East West Link was specifically ruled out for use on urban rail projects in Melbourne, the former Turnbull government had removed this condition.

Federal funding options for the project were realised by the former Abbott Government's 'Asset Recycling Program', which matches 15% of the cost of any State Government asset that is sold to be used for infrastructure projects. The sale of the Port of Melbourne by the Andrews Government could provide additional funding to the Melbourne Metro project once sold, including an indirect contribution by the Federal Government.

In February 2015, the State Government established the Melbourne Metro Rail Authority to oversee planning for new twin 9-kilometre rail tunnels through the central city between South Kensington station and South Yarra. The new Metro Tunnel will have five new underground stations and connect the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines with the Sunbury line, creating a new route through the CBD as an alternative to the City Loop. New underground stations will be created at Arden, Parkville, Domain and two new CBD stations, State Library and Town Hall. Enabling works were underway by 2016 and major construction work on the tunnel and stations began in 2017.The project has an estimated cost of $11 billion and is scheduled to be complete by 2025.

Railways in Melbourne

The Melbourne rail network is a mixed-grade commuter and freight train system in the city of Melbourne, Victoria.

The first steam train in Australia commenced service in Melbourne in 1854, with the network having grown over the last two centuries to consist of 219 stations across 16 lines, serving a yearly ridership of 240.9 million. Metro Trains Melbourne operates the Melbourne suburban railway network under franchise from the State Government of Victoria, whilst the government-owned entity V/Line operates trains from Melbourne across regional Victoria.

The suburban network is a commuter rail system designed to transport passengers from Melbourne's suburbs into the Central Business District (CBD) and associated city loop stations, with the main hub at Flinders Street station. An underground line is currently under construction as part of the Melbourne Metro Rail Project, which aims to unlock network capacity and provide Melbourne with a turn-up-and-go metro-like service.

A total length of 830 kilometres of track is owned by VicTrack and leased to train operators through Public Transport Victoria. The railway network is primarily at ground level, featuring more than 170 level crossings and smaller underground and elevated sections. The Level Crossing Removal Authority has been established to help remove the 50 busiest level crossings and ease associated road congestion. The suburban network operates primarily between 5:00 a.m. and midnight, with 24 hour services from Friday to Sunday. Some tracks are also used by freight trains and V/Line regional services.

In addition to the primary commuter and freight railway networks, Melbourne also features heritage railways such as Puffing Billy and has the world's largest urban tram network.

On 7 September 1851 a public meeting called for the construction of Australia's first railway to linking Melbourne and Sandridge (now known as Port Melbourne), which led to the establishment of the privately owned Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company in 1853.

On 8 February 1853 the Government also approved the establishment of the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company and the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company. Work began in March 1853 on the Sandridge railway line, stretching from the Melbourne (or City) terminus (on the site of modern-day Flinders Street station) to Sandridge. The line was owned and operated by Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company, opening in 1854.

In 1855 the Government conducted enquiries and carried out surveys into country railways. On 1 April 1856, the Railway Department was established as part of the Board of Land and Works with George Christian Darbyshire being appointed Engineer in Chief. On 23 May of that year the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company was taken over by the Government.

Trains were ordered from Robert Stephenson and Company of the United Kingdom. The first train was locally built by Robertson, Martin & Smith, however, owing to delays in shipping. Australia's first steam locomotive was built in ten weeks and cost £2,700. Forming the first steam train to travel in Australia, it made its maiden trip on 12 September 1854.

The opening of the line occurred during the period of the Victorian gold rush—a time when both Melbourne and Victoria undertook massive capital works, each with its own gala opening. The inaugural journey on the Sandridge line was no exception. According to the Argus newspaper's report of the next day: ""Long before the hour appointed... a great crowd assembled round the station at the Melbourne terminus, lining the whole of Flinders Street"". Lieutenant-Governor Sir Charles Hotham and Lady Hotham were aboard the train—which consisted of two first class carriages and one second class—and were presented with satin copies of the railway's timetable and bylaws.

The trip took 10 minutes, none of the later stations along the line having been built yet. On arriving at Station Pier (onto which the tracks extended), it was hailed with gun-salutes by the warships HMS "Electra" and HMS "Fantome".

By March 1855, the four engines ordered from the UK were all in service, with trains running every half-hour. They were named "Melbourne", "Sandridge", "Victoria", and "Yarra" (after the Yarra River over which the line crossed).

Melbourne's second railway line opened 13 May 1857, when the Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company opened their 4.5 km line from the Melbourne (or City) Terminus to St Kilda. This line was later extended by the St Kilda and Brighton Railway Company, which opened a line from St Kilda to Brighton in 1857.

Country lines were also built in 1857, with the Geelong and Melbourne Railway Company opening a line from Geelong to Newport. In 1859 the Williamstown railway line opened, connecting Williamstown and Geelong to Spencer Street station.

More country lines followed in 1859 when Victorian Railways opened a line from the Williamstown line at Footscray, to Sunbury, taking over from the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company that was established in 1853 to build a railway to Echuca, but failed to make any progress.

The first line to Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs was opened in 1859 by the Melbourne and Suburban Railway Company, which ran from Princes Bridge railway station to Punt Road (Richmond), South Yarra, and Prahran. This line was extended to Windsor in 1860, connecting with the St Kilda and Brighton Railway Company line from St Kilda. The new line replaced the indirect St Kilda and Windsor line to the city, which was closed in 1867.

Another suburban line was built by the Melbourne and Essendon Railway Company in 1860, with their line running from North Melbourne to Essendon, with a branch line from Newmarket to Flemington Racecourse opening in 1861. On the eastern side of town, the Melbourne and Suburban Railway Company opened a branch line from Richmond to Burnley and Hawthorn in 1861.

By this point, the railways of Melbourne were a disjointed group of city-centric lines, with various companies operating from three disconnected city terminals—Princes Bridge, Flinders Street, and Spencer Street stations.

Some of the smaller companies were encountering financial problems. The St Kilda and Brighton Railway Company and Melbourne and Suburban Railway Company were absorbed by the Melbourne and Hobson's Bay Railway Company in 1865, forming the Melbourne and Hobsons Bay United Railway Company. The Melbourne and Essendon Railway Company was taken over by the Victorian Government in 1867. The Melbourne and Hobsons Bay United Railway Company was not taken over by the Victorian Government until 1878.

The terminals themselves were linked in 1879, when track was built along the southern side of Flinders Street at street level to connect with Spencer Street station, although this was only used for freight traffic at night. It was not until 1889 that the two track Flinders Street Viaduct was built between the two city terminus stations.

Outwards expansion also continued, with major trunk lines being opened into rural Victoria. Victorian Railways extended their line to Broadmeadows in 1872 as part of the line to Seymour and Albury-Wodonga. In 1879 the Gippsland line was opened from South Yarra to Caulfield, Pakenham and Bairnsdale.

The 1870s and 1880s were a time of great growth and prosperity in Melbourne. Land speculation companies were formed, to buy up outer suburban land cheaply, and to agitate for suburban railways to be built or extended to serve these land holdings and increase land values. By 1880 the "Land Boom" was in full swing in Victoria, with the passing of the Railway Construction Act 1884, later known as the "Octopus Act" for the 66 lines across the state that were authorised in it.

The Frankston line began with the opening of a line from Caulfield to Mordialloc in 1881, reaching the terminus in 1882. A second new suburban railway line was opened from Spencer Street Station to Coburg in 1884, and extended to Somerton in 1889, meeting the main line from Spencer Street to Wodonga. Land developers opened a private railway from Newport to Altona in 1888, but it was closed in 1890, due to lack of demand.

The line from Hawthorn was extended, to Camberwell in 1882, Lilydale in 1883, and Healesville in 1889. In addition, a branch line (now known as the Belgrave line) was opened from Ringwood to Upper Ferntree Gully in 1889. A short branch two station was also opened from Hawthorn to Kew in 1887. The Brighton Beach line was also extended to Sandringham in 1887.

In 1888, railways came to the north eastern suburbs with the opening of the Inner Circle line from Spencer Street station via Royal Park station to what is now Victoria Park station, and then on to Heidelberg. A branch was also opened off the Inner Circle in Fitzroy North, to Epping and Whittlesea in 1888 and 1889. Trains between Spencer Street and Heidelberg reversed at Victoria Park until a link was opened between Victoria Park and Princes Bridge in 1901.

The Outer Circle line opened in 1890, linking Oakleigh (on the Gippsland line) to Riversdale (with a branch to Camberwell on the Lilydale line) and Fairfield (on the Heidelberg line). Originally envisaged to link the Gippsland line with Spencer Street station in the 1870s, this reason disappeared with the building of a direct link via South Yarra before the line had even opened. The line saw little traffic as it traversed empty paddocks, and with no through traffic, the Outer Circle was closed in sections between 1893 and 1897. The Camberwell to Ashburton stretch of the Outer Circle re-opened in 1899, then in 1900, part of the northern section of the Outer Circle reopened as a shuttle service between East Camberwell and Deepdene station. This line closed in 1927.

At the same time as the Outer Circle, a railway was opened from Burnley to Darling and a junction with the Outer Circle at Waverley Road (near the modern East Malvern). A stub of the future Glen Waverley line, it was cut back to Darling in 1895.

The land boom railway building hit a peak with the construction of the Rosstown Railway between Elsternwick and Oakleigh. Built by William Murry Ross, the line was planned from the 1870s to serve a sugar beet mill near Caulfield. Construction commenced in 1883, followed by rebuilding in 1888. Ross's debt grew, and he attempted to sell the line many times without success. The line never opened to traffic and was later dismantled.

The stock market crash of 1891 lead to an extended period of economic depression, and put an end to railway construction until the next decade.

By the 1900s, the driving force for new railway lines were the farmers in what is now Melbourne's outer suburbs. In the Dandenong Ranges a narrow gauge 762 mm line was opened from Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave and Gembrook in 1900 to serve the local farming and timber community. In the Yarra Valley a branch was opened from Lilydale to Yarra Junction and Warburton in 1901. Part of this line is now listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.

In 1901, in preparation for the occasion of a royal visit by the Duke of York, the first Australian royal train was assembled in Melbourne.

The Heidelberg line was extended to Eltham in 1902 and Hurstbridge in 1912. The freight only Mont Park line was also opened in 1911, branching from Macleod. Finally on the Mornington Peninsula, a branch was built from Bittern to Red Hill in 1921.

Planning for electrification was started by Victorian Railways chairman Thomas James Tait, who engaged English engineer Charles Hesterman Merz to deliver a report on the electrification of the Melbourne suburban network. His first report in 1908 recommended a three-stage plan over 2 years, covering 200 route km of existing lines and almost 500 suburban carriages (approximately 80 trains). The report was considered by the Government and the Railway Commissioners, and Merz was engaged to deliver a second report based on their feedback.

Delivered in 1912, this second report recommended an expanded system of electrification to 240 route km. of existing lines (463 track km), and almost 800 suburban carriages (approximately 130 trains). The works were approved by the State Government in December 1912. It was envisaged that the first electric trains would be running by 1915, and the project would be completed by 1917. However, progress fell behind because World War I restrictions prevented electrical equipment being imported from the United Kingdom.

Rolling stock construction continued, with a number of older suburban carriages converted for electric use as the Swing Door trains, while the first of the Tait trains were introduced as steam hauled carriages. Track expansion was also carried out, with four tracks being provided between South Yarra and Caulfield, as well as grade separation from roads. Victorian Railways in 1918 opened the Newport power station, the largest power station in the urban area, to supply electricity as part of the electrification project. The State Electricity Commission of Victoria was formed in 1921 but did not take over Newport A power station until 1951.

The first trials did not occur until October 1918 on the Flemington Racecourse line. Driver training continued on this line until 18 May 1919, when the first electric train ran between Sandringham and Essendon, simulating revenue services. Electric services started on 28 May 1919 with the first train running to Essendon, then on to Sandringham, with full services started the next day. The Burnley–Darling line, the Fawkner line, the reopened branch to Altona, and the Williamstown line followed in 1920.

The line to Broadmeadows, the Whittlesea line to Reservoir, the Bendigo line to St Albans, and the inner sections of the Hurstbridge line were electrified in 1921. The Gippsland line to Dandenong and Frankston line were electrified in 1922, as was the inner section of the Ringwood line due to regrading works.

The original electrification scheme was completed in 1923, but over the next three years a number of short extensions were carried out. The Ashburton line was electrified in 1924, final works on the Lilydale line were completed in 1925, as was electrification on the line to Upper Ferntree Gully. Electrification on the outer ends of the Hurstbridge line were completed by 1926, the Whittlesea line to Thomastown was electrified in 1929, and the Burnley - Darling line was extended to Glen Waverley in 1930 to become the Glen Waverley line.

Railways experienced increased patronage into the 1940s, but railway improvements recommended in the Ashworth Improvement Plan were delayed until after World War II. It was not until 1950 that the Victorian Railways were able to put their Operation Phoenix rebuilding plan into action. The delivery of the Harris trains, the first steel suburban trains on the network, enabled the retirement of the oldest of the Swing Door trains.

Railway lines were extended during this period to encompass Melbourne's growing suburban footprint. The Ashburton line was extended along the old Outer Circle track formation to Alamein station in 1948. The Fawkner line to Upfield and the Reservoir line to Lalor were both electrified in 1959, the Epping line reaching Epping in 1964. A great deal of track amplification was also undertaken, with a number of single line sections eliminated.

The Upper Ferntree Gully to Belgrave section of the Gembrook narrow gauge line was converted to broad gauge and electrified in 1962. The remainder of the line was closed in 1954, but has been progressively reopened by the Puffing Billy Railway. The Pakenham line was electrified in 1954 as part of the works being carried out on the Gippsland line, but suburban services to Pakenham did not start until 1975.

During this rebuilding, a number of little used lines were closed on the edges of Melbourne. The Bittern to Red Hill line closed in 1953, the line between Epping and Whittlesea closed in 1959, and the Lilydale to Warburton line closed in 1964. The final stages of the rebuilding stretched into the 1970s, with track amplification carried out to Footscray, and Box Hill, and the first deliveries of the stainless steel Hitachi trains.

Detailed planning for the Doncaster line also commenced in this period, and by 1972 the route was decided upon. Despite rising costs, the state governments of the period continued to make assurances that the line would be built, but by 1984 land for the line had been sold.

By the 1970s, Melbourne's railway network was run down, with the last major investment on the suburban tracks having taken place nearly fifty years earlier. Sixty-year-old Tait trains (known colloquially as "red rattlers") were still in operation, and inner city congestion at Flinders Street led to peak hour delays. In February 1971, the Melbourne Underground Rail Loop Act was passed, establishing the Melbourne Underground Rail Loop Authority (MURLA) to build a connecting series of tunnels from the major stations along the north, south, east and west extremities of the Melbourne CBD. The project ran for over 14 years, opening progressively between 1981 and 1985. The loop was designed and constructed to improve the capacity of Flinders Street and Spencer Street stations to handle suburban trains and to offer easier connections for users.

Other major changes took place in 1976 when the government authority overseeing Victorian Railways became VicRail and was gradually restructured along corporate lines. Following the restructure, in 1980 the Victorian Transport Study, better known as the Lonie Report, was delivered and called for financial rationalisation. The closure of the Port Melbourne, St. Kilda, Altona, Williamstown, Alamein and Sandringham lines was also recommended, along with their replacement with bus routes instead. These recommendations and cuts were not enacted, however many uneconomical branch lines were closed throughout the rest of the state. The line between Lilydale and Healesville was closed in 1980, now used by the Yarra Valley Railway beyond Yarra Glen. The branch from Baxter to Mornington was closed in 1981, but the line south of Moorooduc is now operated by the Mornington Railway as a tourist route.

The Metrol train control centre was opened in 1980 to coordinate trains throughout the network using computer software that remains in use today. Public transport in Melbourne was also reorganised, with the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) formed in 1983 to coordinate all train, tram and bus services in the city to improve interoperability. With the electrification of the Werribee line in 1983, followed two years later by an extension of the Altona line to Laverton, and the City Loop in full operation by 1985, the last major modernisation of Melbourne's train lines in the 20th century was complete.

Isolated from the City Loop, the Port Melbourne and St Kilda lines were converted to standard gauge light rail in 1987 to accommodate tram routes 111 (now route 109) and 96. The route 96 remains one of the world's top 10 tram routes, and Melbourne's busiest.

The early 1990s saw further changes, with the MTA reborn as the Public Transport Corporation, trading as "The Met".

State Governments of both sides of politics began to push for reform of the railway network, proposing conversion of the Upfield, Williamstown and Alamein lines to light rail. These proposals failed, with the Upfield line instead receiving a series of upgrades to replace labour-intensive manual signalling systems. Federal government funding was made available for the electrification of the Cranbourne line, which was completed in 1995. Rationalisation of the Jolimont rail yard commenced, enabling the creation and expansion of Melbourne Park in 1988 and 1996, and the future construction of Federation Square in 2001.

Upon the Kennett Government's election in 1992, a number of controversial reforms to the operation of the railway system were initiated, with guards being abolished from suburban trains and train drivers taking over the task of door operation. Stations were de-manned, and the Metcard ticketing system was introduced to phase out the old scratch ticketing system. Over this period more than $250 million of operating cost was stripped from the Melbourne network, as the government sought to reign in growing state debt of $32 Billion.

In 1997 "The Met" was split into two operating units —Hillside Trains and Bayside Trains, each to be franchised to a different private operator. Ownership of land and infrastructure for rail and tram services was transferred to a new Victorian Government agency, VicTrack. In addition, a statutory office was created in Government—the Director of Public Transport—with specific responsibility for entering into franchise agreements with public transport operators for the operation of rail and tram services throughout Victoria. By 1999 the privatisation process was complete, with Connex Melbourne and M>Train each operating half of the network. In 2003 the parent company of M>Train (National Express) withdrew from operating public transport in Victoria, and their half of the suburban network was passed to Connex as part of a renegotiated contract.

The franchising contracts contained provisions for the new operators to refurbish the Comeng trains, and to replace the older Hitachi trains. Connex purchased Alstom X'Trapolis sets, while M>Train chose Siemens Nexas units.

In May 2005, the State Government commissioned a A$25 million study into the feasibility of a third track for the Dandenong line to increase capacity for the rapidly growing suburban area. The cost of the triplication process was expected to be as high as A$1 billion, as project activities would have included the organization of corresponding bus services for the rail line, changes to stations and platforms along the line, and the improvement of the signalling system. This project was ultimately sidelined and not delivered by the Brumby Government.

In 2006, Professor Paul Mees and a group of academics estimated that privatisation had cost taxpayers $1.2 billion more than if the system had remained both publicly owned and operated. With the franchise extensions in 2009, taxpayers were to pay an estimated $2.1 billion more by 2010. However, the Institute of Public Affairs released its own report into Melbourne's privatisation, which assessed it as a modest success and observed that a 37.6% increase in patronage on the metropolitan rail system had reversed years of patronage decline due to poor quality services.. The Auditor General of Victoria also performed a comprehensive audit report into the franchises and found that "the franchises represent reasonable value for money".

Beginning in the mid-2000s, a rapid increase in patronage of Melbourne's train network occurred. In the three-year period between financial year 2005 and 2008 rail patronage grew by 35 per cent. Trips grew from 148 million in 2004 to more than 200 million in 2008.

In November 2007, Singapore's SMRT Transit and Hong Kong's MTR Corporation Limited expressed interest in taking control of Melbourne's suburban rail network from Connex in November 2009, when their contract was to be reviewed.

On 25 June 2009, Connex lost its bid to renew its contract with the Victorian Government. Hong Kong backed and owned MTR Corporation took over the Melbourne train network on 30 November 2009, operating as a locally themed consortium Metro Trains Melbourne. MTR is a non-public railway owner and operator in Hong Kong where it is well known for constructing Transit Oriented Developments (TODS) above and around its stations.

Transport Minister Lynne Kosky stated that the Government's A$10.5 billion, 10-year major transport plan, announced in May 2006 had significantly underestimated the usage rates of public transport. Original assessments had forecast increases of around 3-4%, far short of the 10% seen year-on-year. The State Government responded by purchasing new trains and introduced a new ticketing option that enabled commuters to pay a reduced fare if their journey finished by 7am.

In 2008, the Brumby Government announced a $14.1 billion Victorian Transport Plan to augment Melbourne’s rail network. The plan included:Following the investment announcement, the plan for the introduction of more than 200 new weekly train services was released to tackle overcrowding on the city's busiest train lines, a problem that had been attributed to a lack of trains and falling reliability.

On 1 May 2009 the State Government announced that they had committed $562.3 million in the 2009 State Budget for the extension of the Epping line 3.5 kilometres north to South Morang. Construction started in 2010 and was completed in 2012.

In mid-2009, the franchise for operation of the metropolitan rail network was retendered, and a contract was awarded to Metro Trains Melbourne, a consortium led by Hong Kong operator MTR Corporation, to replace the incumbent Connex. Metro began operation on 1 December that year, promising to draw on its international experience to improve Melbourne's rail operations. The metropolitan timetable was entirely rewritten for the first time since 1996 and revised operations commenced in May 2011 with over 600 additional weekday services added. In 2012, a Public Transport Development Authority trading as Public Transport Victoria was established to coordinate, plan and regulate the state's public transport services, including the metropolitan rail system.

On 27 March 2013, Public Transport Victoria published its Network Development Plan Metropolitan Rail, detailing a 4-stage plan spread over 20 years to redevelop Melbourne's rail system into a'metro-style' network, by separating train lines and creating point-to-point lines, upgrading to high-capacity signalling and ordering new trains.

Because of Melbourne's generally level topography, the suburban rail network was constructed with a large number of level crossings. By 2014, over 170 remained, due to a lack of funding for grade separations after 1918. A key campaign promise of the Andrews government prior to its election in 2014 was to remove 50 crossings in 8 years, the most intensive such program in Melbourne's history. The Level Crossing Removal Project became a resounding political success, despite concerns it was creating poor value-for-money infrastructure and controversy about the selection of elevated rail as a method for removing some crossings. By 2018, 29 level crossings had been fully grade separated, well ahead of the government's original schedule, and a further 25 crossings were added to the program to be completed by 2025.

The Regional Rail Link project, which created a new Deer Park–West Werribee railway line in the city's west with new stations at Wyndham Vale and Tarneit, as well as adding an additional track pair between Sunshine and Southern Cross, was completed in mid-2015. Although the project was intended to provide segregated routes for regional trains to Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo, rapid population growth in areas served by the new line forced these services to perform the role of an outer suburban network, causing significant delays and overcrowding.

A redesigned network map was released by PTV at the end of 2016, which replaced an emphasis on fare zones with delineation of individual lines and service patterns. The new map also incorporated regional services and was designed to be accessible to passengers with the most common types of colour blindness.

Metro's contract to operate the suburban network was renewed in 2017 for a further 7 years. The renegotiated contracts included higher monthly performance targets, which it failed to meet 6 times in the first year of the contract's operation.

Construction of an extension of the South Morang line to Mernda commenced in 2016 and was completed on 29 August 2018. The project included new stations at Middle Gorge, Hawkstowe, and a new terminus at a rebuilt Mernda station.

A rail link to Melbourne Airport has been proposed repeatedly since the airport's construction, with a variety of routes and service models suggested, but construction has never commenced. In July 2018 the Federal and State Governments each pledged A$5 billion (for a total of A$10 billion) to construct a rail link. The Federal Government proposed four preferred routes for the link, with one proposal running via a direct tunnel to Highpoint Shopping Centre and the others linking to existing stations in Broadmeadows, Flemington or Sunshine. An assessment of the four preferred routes conducted by Rail Projects Victoria culminated in the route via Sunshine station being selected, with a detailed business case expected by 2020. Construction is expected to start prior to the 2022 Victorian state election.

In August 2018, in the run-up to the 2018 Victorian state election, the State Government pledged $300 million to complete a business case and secure funding to construct a new railway through suburban Melbourne. The project is designed to link major activity centres and amenities such as hospitals, shopping centres, universities, and Melbourne Airport. The proposal would connect most existing railway lines through middle suburbs and enable easier intra-suburban travel.

The Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) would connect the existing station at Cheltenham with other existing stations at Clayton, Glen Waverley, Box Hill, Heidelberg, Reservoir, Fawkner, Broadmeadows, Sunshine and Werribee. It will also link to new stations to be built in areas that have long been promised rail connections, including Monash University, Burwood, Doncaster, Bundoora and Melbourne Airport. Construction is scheduled to begin on the first stage from Cheltenham to Box Hill by 2022 with other sections progressively opening until the full line is operational by 2050.

The State Government is currently preparing a business case for electrification and extension of the Frankston line to Baxter in Melbourne's South. The Federal Government committed $225 million towards the project in its 2017-2018 budget.

During the 2018 Victorian state election, the State Government also announced its Western Rail Plan, which would quadruplicate and electrify the rail lines to Melton and Wyndham Vale, allowing Metro services. Under this plan, Metro and V/Line regional services would be separated, allowing for higher speed trains to be introduced to Geelong and Ballarat. These faster trains would run via a new tunnel between Sunshine and Southern Cross Station to be built as part of the Airport rail link, potentially using the same new generation of electrified regional rolling stock as the Airport line. According to the Government, these lines could be fully electrified to Geelong and Ballarat and run at speeds of up to 250 km/h, significantly above the 160 km/h limit of current V/Line VLocity trains. Planning for the fast rail and electrification of the lines to Melton and Wyndham Vale will occur alongside planning for the Airport rail link, with construction set to start by 2022.

The trains in Melbourne operate on broad gauge track. The network is primarily at ground level, with more than 170 level crossings, and shared trackage with freight trains and V/Line regional services. The suburban network uses power catenary-style overhead wiring at 1500 volts DC.

All but a handful of the lines include at least one single-track section, and except for flyovers at North Melbourne, Burnley, and Camberwell, all junctions are flat junctions. These restrictions hinder the performance of the system, as delays tend to "knock on" to other services. Two lines have three-track sections (the centre line being signalled for two-way operation and used for up trains in the morning peak period and down trains at other times). Where two or more lines come together in the inner area, there are four or more tracks.

Operationally, the 16 lines are divided into four groups of lines. The Clifton Hill Group comprises the two lines that branch at Clifton Hill station. The Burnley Group comprises the four lines that go through Burnley station. The Caulfield Group comprises the three lines that go through Caulfield station, plus the Sandringham line. The Northern Group comprises the remaining lines, which all go through North Melbourne station.

The City Loop consists of four single-track underground lines, one for each group, allowing trains arriving in the city from each group to circle the central business district then head out again to a destination on the same group. Trains generally operate within one of the four groups, although there is some interworking between the Burnley and Clifton Hill groups and between the Caulfield and Northern Groups.

There are 212 stations in Melbourne, operated by Metro Trains Melbourne.

Timetable information is available to passengers at stations through the PRIDE II system, which is an electronic timetable and announcement system, and stands for Passenger Real-time Information Dissemination Equipment. The system consists of:

Control data comes from two locations: Metrol, and control stations. Next train data and times are automatically updated by the train control systems, with manual overrides also possible.

All stations are provided with "talking boxes" which have two buttons and a small speaker.
The green button, when pressed, contacts the PRIDE controller over the rail telephone network, identifying itself by the DTMF tones that correspond to the ID number assigned to the box. The system then reads out times and destinations for the next two services to depart that platform (or, in the case of stations with a single island platform with departures either side, both platforms). The red button when pressed, gives the user two way communication with the closest control station.

Busy stations are often provided with an electronic LED s, which indicate the destination, time, stopping pattern summary, and minutes to departure for the next train on the platform.

Stations on the City Loop, in addition to North Melbourne, Richmond, and Box Hill stations, have CRT screen s, although some of these have recently been replaced by widescreen LCD screens. These displays show in detail the destination, scheduled and actual departure time, and all stations the next train stops at. Also shown is the destination and time of the following train, and the system is capable of providing suggested connections and warn of service interruptions.

On Sunday, 26 September 2010, the PRIDE system was upgraded with new voice announcements. The voice is now female, and now advises to touch on and off when using Myki.

As part of the Bayside Rail Upgrade, stations on the Frankston line will receive new "network status boards". These LCD screens provide travel information on all of Melbournes 16 railway lines as well as tram & bus services, including delays, replacement services or planned disruptions.

Most lines in Melbourne operate under an automatic block system of safeworking with three-position power signalling. This permits signals to operate automatically with the passage of trains, enforcing the distance between them. At junctions signals are manually controlled from signal boxes, with interlockings used to ensure conflicting paths are not set. The Flemington Racecourse line has two-position automatic signalling, a variant of the three-position system.

The outer end of the Hurstbridge line used to be operated with token based systems and two-position manual signalling, where access to the line is based upon possession of a token. It was dismantled in 2013.

Train stops are used to enforce stop indications on signals—should a train pass a signal, the train's brakes will automatically be applied. Trains are also fitted with pilot valves, a form of dead man's switch that applies the brakes should the driver fail to maintain a foot or hand pilot valve in a set position. The "VICERS" vigilance control and event recorder system is also being currently fitted to suburban trains to provide an additional level of safety.

The main control room for the rail network is Metrol. Located in the Melbourne CBD, it controls signals in the inner suburbs, tracking the location of all trains, as well as the handling the distribution of real time passenger information, and manages disruptions to the timetable. Additional signal boxes are located throughout the network, and in direct communication with Metrol.

The railways in Melbourne generally use British-derived terminology. For example:

Despite initially being constructed and operated as private railways in the 1850s, following the establishment of the government-owned Victorian Railways in 1858 Melbourne's suburban railway system has been state operated for the majority of its existence. In the 1920s Victorian Railways the was operator of the world's busiest train station (Flinders Street) and one of the world's busiest railway networks. Following several high-profile collisions in the early 20th century, a number of network safety processes were implemented by the operator to improve passenger safety.

The agency name was shortened to VicRail in the early 1980s and then, later in the decade, the metropolitan system became known as Metropolitan Transit ('The Met') and the regional system became known as V/Line. In preparation for privatisation the suburban system was split into Bayside Trains and Hillside Trains by the Kennett Ministry in 1997. Privatisation was completed in 1999 and M-Train and Connex Melbourne won the tender to operate Bayside, and Hillside trains, respectively. Following M>Train's inability to renegotiate financial arrangements, in 2004 Connex Melbourne assumed responsibility for the entire network. Current operations are provided by Metro Trains Melbourne, an MTR Corporation joint venture.

Operator Timelines

Melbourne railways are built to Irish broad gauge. Interstate lines and the tram system (including former railway lines converted to light rail) are standard gauge. Some of these lines share track with regional lines, and also carry diesel-hauled passenger and goods trains to locations beyond the suburban network. Power is supplied by catenary-style overhead wiring at 1500 volts DC.

The majority of the current suburban train fleet in Melbourne is owned by VicTrack, with the train operator (currently Metro Trains Melbourne) responsible for maintaining the fleet. All trains on the Melbourne suburban network are electric and driver-only operated. Guards on suburban trains were discontinued between 1993 and 1995.

All trains are fitted with power-operated sliding doors which are closed by the driver, but opened by passengers. The doors of newer model X'Trapolis 100 and Siemens trains are opened electronically with a button, whilst Comeng trains are slid manually using handles. Trains are fitted with air conditioning, closed-circuit cameras, and emergency intercom systems. Trains are fixed into three car units and may operate alone or in pairs. All three train types in operation are unable to operate coupled to another type.

Since shortly after the introduction of suburban electric trains in Melbourne, their carriages have been classified as follows. All fleet types have used these classifications, with different fleet types using different number ranges for the carriages.An exception to the above classifications was the trial double-deck train, which used T to indicate a trailer carriage with a driving compartment, and M to indicate a motorised carriage without a driving compartment.

Currently, all trains are assembled into a symmetrical M-T-M arrangement. Trains comprise either one or two such units. All peak period services and some off-peak services comprise two units. The now retired Hitachi trains operated in fixed two-unit sets.

Melbourne's suburban network includes 16 electrified lines and 1 non-electrified line. Many lines have been lengthened over time, most notably the Mernda line from Epping to South Morang in 2012 and again to Mernda in 2018. Lines have also changed terminus or layout, including the forthcoming changes to the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury lines as part of the Melbourne Metro Rail Project. Numerous proposals for new lines or extensions not yet constructed have been made, including the long-outstanding Doncaster railway line and Melbourne Airport rail link.Stony Point line services operate as shuttles from Frankston station with passengers to and from Flinders Street required to change trains. It is the only non-electrified line operated by Metro Trains, with services being operated using Sprinter diesel multiple units leased from V/Line.

Melton (Ballarat line) and Wyndham Vale (Geelong line) services are operated by V/Line and depart from Southern Cross, but are within the metropolitan ticketing zone. Bacchus Marsh/Melton/Ballarat trains stop at Rockbank, Caroline Springs, Deer Park and Ardeer. Wyndham Vale/Geelong trains also stop at Ardeer and Deer Park, along with Tarneit. Only Wyndham Vale and Ballarat trains stop at Ardeer, not Geelong trains.

5 morning peak and 3 afternoon peak trains operate to and from Wyndham Vale. One weekday morning service and numerous football services operate to Wyndham Vale.

Frequent peak hour trains operate to and from Bacchus Marsh and Melton. Since 2015, weekday hourly trains have also operated to Bacchus Marsh. On top of Ballarat trains stopping here, Bacchus Marsh residents have half hourly services to the city.

On weekdays, Geelong and Ballarat trains run express after Tarneit and Melton respectively, with Wyndham Vale, Bacchus Marsh and Melton trains stopping between Rockbank and Sunshine. On weekends, these stations are serviced by Ballarat trains.

Sunbury trains also used to be operated by V/Line trains until 2012 when the electrical network was extended to Sunbury. These trains also stopped at Diggers Rest. The redundant carriages were moved onto Bacchus Marsh services instead. Sunbury passengers can still catch V/Line trains from Bendigo. V/Line trains used to also operate to Donnybrook, stopping at Craigieburn Station. Since the electrical network was extended to Craigieburn in 2007, trains have stopped terminating at Donnybrook.

Suburban services are operated by Metro Trains Melbourne. Railway lines and service patterns are often classified into groups, which are:

Most of the above lines travel along the City Loop, and as some trains change to service other lines at their terminus, others may run through the City Loop incidentally. The Frankston line does not travel along the City Loop on off-peak weekdays, but does so during the peak and weekends.

Melbourne uses clock-face scheduling in off-peak periods, but generally not in rush hour, due to the network operating near to infrastructure capacity and having to accommodate single-line sections, flat junctions, and regional diesel-hauled trains. Frequencies vary according to time of day, day of week and by line. In some places, usually interchange stations, services on two lines combine to provide more frequent services on common sections of tracks. All services become 24 hour from Friday morning to Sunday evening, with at least one departure every hour after 12am.

Along with other Australian railways, Melbourne uses the British terminology of "up" and "down", with "up" being defined as toward Flinders Street station in the CBD.

The myki smart-card ticketing system is the main ticketing system currently in use across Melbourne, introduced in 2010. Prior to December 2012 Melbourne also used a magnetic strip paper ticket system known as the Metcard, first introduced to the railway network in 1996. On 29 December 2012 Metcard was no longer available for use on Melbourne's public transport and completely replaced by myki. Multi-modal tickets were first introduced in Melbourne in 1969 and prior to this train, tram and bus services all had separated ticketing systems.

V/Line regional services share tracks with several suburban train lines from the outskirts of Melbourne to the regional railway terminus at Southern Cross station (with the Traralgon V/Line rail service terminating at Flinders Street station). The Pakenham line has the longest shared track section which is used by V/Line services to the Latrobe Valley. The Werribee, Sunbury and Craigieburn lines also share lesser sections of track with counterpart suburban lines.

The Regional Rail Link project aimed to separate suburban services from all regional trains, except those to the North-East and the Latrobe Valley. A ceremonial start of construction was held in August 2009 and the project was completed in June 2015.

Melbourne also has an extensive network of railway lines and yards to serve freight traffic. The lines are of two gauges— broad gauge and standard gauge, and are not electrified. In the inner western suburbs of the city, freight trains operate on dedicated lines, but in other areas freight trains share tracks with the suburban Metro Trains Melbourne and regional V/Line passenger services. The majority of freight terminals are located in the inner suburbs around Port of Melbourne, others are located between the Melbourne CBD and Footscray.

Until the 1980s a number of suburban stations had their own goods yards, with freight trains running over the suburban network, often with the E or L class electric locomotives.

The prime rail statute in Victoria is the Transport Integration Act. The Act establishes the Department of Transport as the integration agency for Victoria's transport system. The Act also establishes and sets the charters of the state agencies charged with providing public transport rail services and managing network access for freight services, namely the Director of Public Transport and V/Line. In addition, the Act creates VicTrack which owns the public rail network and associated infrastructure. Another important statute is the Rail Management Act 1996 which confers powers on rail operators and provides for a rail access scheme for the state's rail network.

The safety of rail operations in Melbourne is regulated by the Rail Safety Act 2006 which applies to all commercial passenger and freight operations as well as tourist and heritage railways. The Act creates a framework containing safety duties for all rail industry participants and requires rail operators who manage infrastructure and rolling stock to obtain accreditation prior to commencing operations. Accredited rail operators are also required to have a safety management system to guide their operations.

Sanctions applying to the safety scheme established under the Rail Safety Act are contained in the Transport (Compliance and Miscellaneous) Act 1983. The safety regulator for the rail system in Melbourne is the Director, Transport Safety (trading as Transport Safety Victoria) whose office is established under the Transport Integration Act 2010.

Rail operators in Victoria can also be the subject of no blame investigations conducted by the Chief Investigator, Transport Safety or the Australian Transport Safety Bureau(ATSB). The Chief Investigator is charged by the Transport Integration Act with conducting investigations into rail safety matters including incidents and trends. ATSB, on the other hand, has jusridiction over the same matters where they occur on the Defined Interstate Rail Network.

Ticketing requirements for public transport in Melbourne are mainly contained in the Transport (Ticketing) Regulations 2006 and the Victorian Fares and Ticketing Manual. Rules about safe and fair conduct on trains and trams in Melbourne are generally contained in the Transport (Compliance and Miscellaneous) Act 1983 and the Transport (Conduct) Regulations 2005. If Metro does not reach its Punctuality and Delivery goals they will give out compensation to eligible customers. In the month of December 2014, Metro Trains had a delivery rate of 98.5%, and a Punctuality rate of 93.60%. In 2014, Metro Trains were accused of not stopping at underpopulated suburbs' stations in order to arrive on time, this practise has been condemned by the general public and the media. They have offered compensation to affected passengers.

Tourist and Heritage Railways in Melbourne and Victoria are currently governed by provisions in the Transport (Compliance and Miscellaneous) Act 1983. In future, they will be regulated by the recently enacted Tourist and Heritage Railways Act 2010, which commenced in October 2011.