A $1.3 million payment from WA to the Commonwealth has settled a 50-year, $106 million loan to build the Kalgoorlie to Perth standard-gauge rail line.
Known as the Eastern Goldfields Railway, the line between Perth and Kalgoorlie was built in stages in the 1890s. It was converted to standard gauge in the 1960s, as part of a Menzies-era plan to build a standard-gauge line from Sydney to Perth.
Minister for infrastructure and deputy prime minister Warren Truss announced on Thursday that 50 years on, the money lent to WA by the Commonwealth to convert the line has been repaid, with the cost of administering the loan now disproportionate to the amount outstanding.
“The project reflected the forward-thinking nature of the Menzies Government,” Truss said.
“Standardising the rail line was one of the most important projects in Western Australia and Australia’s history, facilitating mining development, improving the defence of Australia, and delivering stronger trade and commerce.
“The project connected Sydney with Perth in 1968, making it possible today for the Australian Rail Track Corporation to operate a modern railway that transports around 80 per cent of the freight across the continent.
“Then and now, the Australian Government’s focus is in helping fund transformational infrastructure projects that improve productivity and promote economic prosperity.”
Truss said repayment of the loan marked the final act of one of the important infrastructure reforms in the nation’s history and delivered on the Government’s deregulation agenda by removing the need for continued administration of the loan for both governments.
Repayment of the loan also means that the enabling legislation, Railway Agreement (Western Australia) Act 1961, can now be repealed.
“It is apt that repayment of the loan comes when we are commencing one of the next big rail reforms for the 21st century – the Inland Rail project between Brisbane and Melbourne,” he said.
“The Inland Rail will enhance the national standard gauge connection and, building on the full standardisation of the East-West transcontinental rail line, connect Brisbane to Perth and Adelaide, without going through Sydney and the 19th century coastal route.
“The Australian Government is committed to creating a rail freight network that will meet the needs of industry into the 22nd Century, supporting jobs and the economy more broadly.”