Bombardier will deliver 21 new VLocity carriages to Victoria’s regional network under a $257 million commitment in the state Budget.
The funding also includes money to build a new maintenance and stabling yard in Waurn Ponds.
Victorian premier Daniel Andrews was joined by state transport minister Jacinta Allan at Waurn Ponds on Friday, May 1 to make the announcement.
“The new carriages and stabling yards will create jobs and improve services for the more than 50,000 passengers who use V/Line services every weekday,” Allan said.
The stabling yard is projected to create around 100 jobs during construction and 30 once completed, and the construction of the new carriages should secure 64 jobs at Bombardier’s Dandenong facility, Allan added.
Andrews said the 21 new carriages would expand V/Line’s daily passenger capacity by around 1500.
“This investment of more than $250 million will provide better regional train services, and help create nearly 200 jobs,” the premier asserted.
“Patronage on our regional train network has increased by nearly 100% in the past decade, and this investment means we can deliver high-quality regional public transport for decades to come.”
Andrews and Allan said the new depot in Waurn Ponds will offer local education and training opportunities, with the government committing to work closely with the TAFE sector to develop programs for apprentices in the rolling stock industry, training the next generation of train and tram engineers.
Construction of the 21 carriages is expected to commence in mid-2016, and the first carriages will be in service by late 2017, the premier said. Construction of all new carriages will be complete by the end of 2018.