Sydney-Melbourne rail upgrades could be ‘transformative’, Coalition says

Bridget McKenzie backs immediate improvements to interstate track as an alternative to long-term high-speed plans

Upgrades to the Sydney-Melbourne railway that slash the journey from 11 hours to six within a few years could be “transformative” for regional Australia, says the federal opposition. It is urging the Albanese government not to let ambitions for a decades-long high-speed rail project get in the way of more immediate upgrades.

The Coalition’s transport spokesperson, Bridget McKenzie, told Guardian Australia she believed sections of the existing track “have significant but eminently fixable impediments to a faster route” – including a key stretch between Goulburn and Junee in New South Wales – and heralded the economic and emissions benefits an upgraded track could bring.