The first timetabled train rolled through Melbourne’s new Metro Tunnel this morning, carrying passengers beneath the city on a route that has taken a decade to build and thousands of workers to complete. Premier Jacinta Allan and Transport Infrastructure Minister Gabrielle Williams joined commuters on the inaugural service, calling it a milestone that will reshape the city’s transport network.
The project has doubled the size of Melbourne’s underground rail system and created a direct link between Sunbury in the west and East Pakenham in the south east. The first train from Sunbury entered the tunnel at 10:04am, with earlier departures from both ends converging almost simultaneously at Town Hall Station before continuing along the 97 kilometre line.
High capacity signalling, combined with the removal of every level crossing on the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury routes, has made turn up and go services possible. To mark the occasion, travel across the entire network is free today and will remain free on weekends until 1 February.
Premier Jacinta Allan said the opening reflects years of work and determination across the state. “Today, thousands of Victorians will ride the Metro Tunnel and get to experience the biggest change to our rail network in 40 years.” She said the project reflects the idea that time matters to every commuter. “This project is about fairness. It means getting to work, uni and home faster – saving you more time, wherever you live.” She also thanked the workforce behind the build. “Today belongs to the thousands of Victorians who have spent the past decade building the Metro Tunnel – without you, none of this would be possible.”
The tunnel opens alongside the Summer Start timetable, which adds more than 240 extra weekly services across the affected corridors. New trains will stop at Arden, Parkville, State Library, Town Hall and Anzac, adding fresh points of connection across the inner city. Between 10am and 3pm on weekdays and 10am and 7pm on weekends, services will run every 20 minutes between Westall and West Footscray, with some weekend trains running all the way to Sunbury and East Pakenham.
From 1 February, the system will reach full integration when the Big Switch directs the Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines exclusively through the new tunnels. A new timetable will take effect across the entire state, with Frankston line services returning to the City Loop.
The construction task has been vast. More than 7,000 workers excavated 1.8 million cubic metres of rock and soil, built twin tunnels, poured 754,000 cubic metres of concrete, installed 157,000 tonnes of steel and laid 40 kilometres of Australian-made track. The state has funded and delivered the project in full.
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