Plans to extend Melbourne’s airport rail link have been accelerated, with construction of the next stage expected to begin in 2028, Victorian Premier Ben Carroll and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have announced.
The second stage will run from the Sunshine transport hub to Melbourne Airport, via a new Keilor East station in Mr Carroll’s marginal electorate.
The project will include a 7.4km railway from Albion to the edge of the airport precinct, as well as a 500m bridge carrying trains over the Maribyrnong River. Site investigations and procurement are due to begin within weeks.
“A new Keilor East station will give locals direct access to the city via the metro tunnel,” Mr Carroll said.
The Victorian and federal Labor governments have made a joint commitment of $12 billion to the wider Melbourne Airport Rail project, which is expected to be completed in 2031.
Labor estimates the Keilor East station would provide about 5,200 passengers with access to the city each day. The airport rail link is expected to carry 6,600 passengers and airport workers every hour.
“We’re building Victoria’s future, unlocking capacity to run more trains, more often and ensuring we have a train line to Melbourne Airport,” Mr Albanese said.
Melbourne Airport rail link set to progress in stages
The first phase, costing $4.1 billion, is scheduled for completion in 2030. It involves reorganising six kilometres of track between West Footscray and Albion into a six-platform superhub connected through Sunshine station.
Construction at Sunshine began in February and has previously been described by the Victorian Government as the most complex part of the project.
The final stage, including an above-ground station within the airport precinct, does not yet have a clear completion date.
Plans for a Melbourne airport railway have been under consideration since the 1960s, but the project has faced repeated delays and reversals. Construction was paused in 2023 during a prolonged federal infrastructure review.
After the review approved the project’s continuation, Melbourne Airport and the Victorian Government disagreed over whether the proposed Tullamarine station should be underground or elevated. Mediator Neil Scales was appointed to resolve the dispute and concluded that an underground station should no longer be considered, after which the airport accepted the decision.
