Petition for rail link to Melbourne Airport attracts thousands of signatures
- Our traffic becoming a never-ending peak
- Jetsetters warned of traffic chaos
- Flying trip to the airport
THOUSANDS of people have signed an online petition that says Melbourne has been “left behind in the Stone Age”, despite our crowning as the world’s most liveable city again.
The change.org petition calls for the construction of a rail link to Melbourne Airport and has won widespread support, gaining more than 3600 signatures within a month.
The petition, started by a Melbourne woman, said the State Government must “urgently” build a rail link to the airport.
“To make Melbourne City one of the most inaccessible city’s (sic) in the world because there is no rail connection to the airport is beyond my comprehension,” a woman wrote on the petition.
Last month, a Melbourne Airport submission to Infrastructure Victoria warned the existing road network would “exceed its capacity and create untenable delays for traffic between the airport and the CBD in the next 10 to 15 years”.
An Infrastructure Victoria report into Melbourne’s future said a rail line to the airport was a medium to long-term priority, to be delivered in the next 15-30 years but only after the rail Metro Tunnel was built.
Airport spokesman Grant Smith said a detailed study into feasible rail options was needed “now”.
“We support the principle of an airport rail link because our projected growth in passengers from 34 million in 2016, to 60 million in 2033, cannot be effectively serviced without it,” Mr Smith said.
“However, a rail option will only be successful if it helps to tackle the wider issue of congestion in Victoria’s transport network overall, and that means the planning for airport rail must consider the link’s role as part of a bigger solution to Melbourne’s wider congestion problem.”
Most liveable city for the sixth year1:30
The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has ranked Melbourne the world's most liveable city for the sixth consecutive year. Courtesy Melbourne City Council
Hume Council’s director of planning and development Kelvin Walsh said the council supported a Melbourne Airport rail link initiative.
“This, however, will need to be taken into consideration of the airport’s ongoing growth, as well as the growth of surrounding areas, such as Sunbury.”
Bob Neilson, a spokesman for the Acting Minister for Public Transport Jaala Pulford, said the State Government had fully funded and started building the Metro Tunnel.
Ms Pulford said the CityLink Tulla Widening project would ease congestion to and from the airport, cutting travel times by up to 17 minutes.