Fact Sheet 1 - Essential facts

Speedrail details

Service: Starting operations in 2003 with a 45-minute service frequency, 6am to midnight, taking 81 minutes to travel the 270 km at up to 320 kph and linking to Sydney and Canberra airports

Cost: $3.5 billion - the single most important rail contract in Australia's history.

Jobs: 15,000 jobs initially during the construction phase, 1800 permanent jobs thereafter directly and indirectly

Timetable: 45 months from start of construction to completion

Benefits: Project will increase the economic wellbeing of Australian households by a total of $5.9 billion (estimate) over 30 years

1. Speedrail says it is not seeking an operating subsidy from Government
2. The Speedrail project does not rely on capital injections from Governments and will pay Governments' land acquisition costs over the 30-year life of the project
3. The project reverts to public ownership at the end of 30 years

Other benefits

An economic analysis of the Speedrail project by the Allen Consulting Group revealed the following facts.

Faster travel time. Speedrail will take just 81 minutes to travel from Sydney Central railway station via the new Airport line, the suburban rail network to Campbelltown and a new rail corridor to the Canberra Airport. This is an estimated nine minutes shorter than current air and taxi travel between the same points. Car travellers will save between 60 and 90 minutes, depending on time of day.

Lower transport costs. Speedrail requires less economic resources to operate. It would cost about six cents per passenger-kilometre, compared with about 18 cents for scheduled air services in the corridor.

Positive benefit-to-cost ratio. The benefit-to-cost ratio for the Speedrail project is approximately 1.5. Every $1 spent by the proponents generates a community benefit of $1.50.

Project features

The Speedrail "BOOT" (build, own, operate and transfer) proposal involves the design, construction, financing, operation and maintenance of the Sydney-Canberra Very High Speed rail link and transfer ownership to public control after 30 years.

After a successful "proving up" or "confirmation" phase, the Speedrail Group would construct a separate, new, electrified line that would be built close to the Federal and Hume highways from Canberra to the outskirts of Sydney.

New stations would be built at Canberra Airport, Goulburn and the Southern Highlands.

The dedicated high-speed line would be 220 km in length, engineered to accept the next generation of TGV trains operating at up to 360 kph. Initially, nine TGV train sets, each of eight cars, will travel at speeds of up to 320 kph to complete an express journey in 81 minutes. Trains stopping at the Southern Highlands and Goulburn will take a few minutes longer.

 
Infrastructure requirements

The Speedrail proposal would involve construction of a tunnel from platforms 14 and 15 at Sydney's Central Station to the New Southern Railway linking to Sydney Airport.

In addition to new stations serving the Very High Speed Train at Canberra Airport, Goulburn and the Southern Highlands, improvements would be made at Central and Campbelltown stations.

For optimum operation through the Sydney suburbs, the East Hills and Southern lines would be upgraded, including the addition of a new, third track on sections between Turrella and Glen Alpine.

A rolling stock maintenance and servicing facility would be built near the Canberra end of the high-speed line.