Regional Rail Link final contract awarded

The announcement for the $43m design and construct contract for works at West Werribee Junction was made by Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Victorian premier Ted Baillieu on June 8 at a sod turning ceremony on the Deer Park to West Werribee section of the Regional Rail Link project.

The scope of the final works package includes:

• Two new dedicated regional tracks connecting the existing Geelong line to Regional Rail Link
• A new rail bridge over the existing broad gauge and standard gauge tracks and Bulban Road
• Slewing of the existing broad gauge (V/Line) tracks, and the realignment of Bulban Road to accommodate the new rail bridge
• Service and fibre optic cable relocations, as well as drainage and landscaping works.

The new railway bridge will be a significant feature in the landscape and will provide the vital connection linking Regional Rail Link to the Geelong-Melbourne railway line.

Once complete, the final works package will see Victoria's three largest regional cities, Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat, have their own dedicated tracks through the metropolitan system, improving the capacity and on-time performance for metro and regional services. Passengers travelling by train from Geelong to Melbourne will travel via new stations at Wyndham Vale and Tarneit and connect to the Ballarat line at Deer Park. From Sunshine, where the Bendigo line joins, passengers will travel on dedicated regional tracks all the way to Southern Cross Station.

Separating the regional and metropolitan lines will increase capacity for all commuters; upon completion there will be enough capacity for extra train services to move up to 9000 extra passengers across the network during peak times.