A re-elected Minns Labor Government will deliver the largest single investment in heavy rail infrastructure in generations for the Illawarra and South Coast, committing $6.8 billion to the South Coast Rail Plan to electrify the Kiama to Bomaderry service and double the tracks at key bottlenecks.
For over 100 years the South Coast Line has been the backbone of the Illawarra and Shoalhaven economies, but without significant investment it will not meet passenger and freight demand which is expected to grow by 29% and 26% respectively by 2041.
Communities in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven have been calling for improvements for decades, with reliability, capacity and speed constrained by steep terrain and single track sections.
The Minns Labor Government’s South Coast Rail Plan will deliver the rail infrastructure required to improve and increase services for the 7.6 million passengers who currently use it each year, and for the industry, tourism and jobs that the rail line supports.
Work already underway
The people of the South Coast and Illawarra have heard promises of upgrades many times before.
This plan consists of an immediate investment of $621 million, with work already underway to upgrade critical infrastructure ahead of electrification and duplication work beginning. This includes:
· Renewal and upgrade of power and signalling infrastructure.
· Upgrading drainage, culverts and raising sections of track to reduce flooding impacts.
· Strengthening embankments and stabilising slopes to prevent landslips and rockfalls between Waterfall and Wollongong.
· Work to better protect critical rail infrastructure from bushfire and extreme heat conditions.
This work which has been informed by the Illawarra Rail Resilience Plan promised at the last election, is expected to reduce delays, increase frequency and reliability of services and reduce journey times.
Electrification and duplication
This investment will deliver increased track capacity, improved reliability and reduce journey times for the T4 Illawarra and South Coast lines. Key elements include:
- Electrify the Kiama to Bomaderry line: this will facilitate the replacement of the ageing diesel trains with new electric trains, and allow a direct connection to Central, removing the need for passengers to interchange at Kiama.
- Installation of additional tracks and passing loops between Wollongong to Kiama: this section is predominantly single track which limits capacity and reliability. Additional tracks will allow increased capacity, more frequent services with regular stopping patterns.
- Removing South Coast bottlenecks: detailed planning work will address key issues including flat junctions, level crossings, and station and track locations.
- Installing quadruple tracks between Hurstville to Sutherland: this section currently has two tracks which are shared by passenger and freight services on the South Coast Line and the T4 Illawarra Line. Doubling capacity will separate these two lines leading to increased frequency, capacity and reliability.
Detailed planning works for electrification and duplication will commence in 2027 and confirm the final scope and cost of the upgrades, with construction expected to be complete by the mid to late 2030s.
