Currently the Ballarat and Geelong lines merge just west of Deer Park, where they run to Sunshine, joined there by trains from Bendigo (though these don’t actually stop at Sunshine station).

From there, these three lines reach the city via the V/Line Regional Rail Link tracks from Sunshine into Southern Cross (shown in purple above).

So how full are the RRL tracks? Here’s how the timetable looks in peak hour inbound:

• GLG=from Geelong line (blue)
• BGO=from Bendigo (green)
• BAL=from Ballarat (orange)
• *Short run service from Wyndham Vale, Bacchus Marsh, Melton

So… mostly a train every three minutes, meaning the RRL tracks are pretty full in peak.

There’s also some careful skip-stop timetabling on the Ballarat line where some trains stop at Rockbank and Ardeer, and others stop at Caroline Springs and Deer Park, to help balance loads and make the most out of the track capacity.

Similarly in peak, the busy Tarneit and new West Tarneit stations are only served by short run services starting at Wyndham Vale.

Pretty full tracks is why to add capacity in the short term, the focus has been on longer/higher capacity trains, with the medium term plan (frustratingly delayed) being Melton electrification: a combination of higher capacity trains, running on the suburban tracks instead, and track expansion between Sunshine and at least Deer Park west.

Other options might include upgraded signalling (though this would likely mean also upgrading the entire V/Line train fleet) – but ultimately, Melton (and Tarneit/Wyndham Vale) are part of suburban Melbourne, and really need a suburban train service.

The sooner it happens, the better.

It’s impressive, but you also get a sense that they have designed it for scale to carry large numbers of people through the stations.

In contrast with Melbourne, they have named the interchange stations after the existing Sydney Trains stations.

So there’s no confusion about the M1 running to Central – a clear benefit over the confusion we’ve seen in Melbourne from people not understanding that Town Hall and State Library stations are adjacent to existing stations at Flinders Street and Melbourne Central.

That said, I did not try the connection at Martin Place (Sydney Trains T4 to M1).

But the interchange at Central from train to metro was pretty seamless, even if it involves a bit of walking and a few escalators.

The signage is good. The use of TMLBF for the various modes helps with navigation.

Many of the M1 platforms look similar to Melbourne’s new metro stations. Island platforms with platform screen doors, not a great deal of seating. Even the same rubbish bins.

The trains are similar to other trains elsewhere around the world; you don’t really notice that they’re driverless unless you’re at the front of the train… which of course I had to try!

The basic weekend and evening frequency of every 10 minutes is similar to the Melbourne Metro tunnel but the weekday off-peak (interpeak, eg midday) frequency is far better at five minutes.

Peak frequency is similar at about every 4 minutes, but the Sydney Metro does not have V/Line services disrupting the flow resulting in the 7 to 8 minute gaps that Melbourne has.

Melbourne protip: don’t catch a peak train just after one of those gaps if you don’t like crowds. Check the screens, there’s probably another train just behind it. … in fact this is something you can’t do in Sydney, because oddly, the screens on the platforms don’t have this information.

I didn’t have a chance to see all of the Sydney Metro line but I did visit Chatswood – which includes cross platform interchange with the existing T1/T9 suburban lines.

It’s important to remember that a metro line doesn’t exist in isolation. The quality of the connecting services counts for a lot – almost all Sydney suburban stations have trains every 15 minutes or better.

In public transport, the network effect is vital. The total utility of all the lines combined is far greater than the sum.

At the Sydney suburban M1 stations they also rely on connecting buses. They were trialling on demand bus routes but moved away from them as they found they are not very economically efficient to run at scale.

They’ve also built some pretty big station car parks which definitely do not scale… but they’ve fallen into the trap of building more. Just a few months ago they announced $160m for 1200 spaces, or an eye-watering $133,333 per space.

Sydney is building further Metro lines. The existing M1 line is being extended west to Bankstown (conversion of a suburban line) and two new lines are being built – from the CBD to Parramatta, and from St Marys to the new Western Sydney Airport.

The only solid plans in Melbourne for more heavy rail are the long-awaited extensions of suburban rail to Melton and the airport and of course the Suburban Rail Loop.

SRL is the only proposed standalone automated metro planned anywhere in Australia outside Sydney. But it’s quite different from any current of proposed Sydney Metro line, with far fewer stations (meaning it reaches fewer people directly, and means fewer development precincts and fewer overall benefits).

The other point worth noting about Sydney’s Metro is that patronage is going gangbusters, especially since the city section opened in August 2024.

An average of 238,000 trips on weekdays (as of July 2026) makes it the busiest single public transport route in the country. That one line therefore carries about a third of the number of passengers as the 15ish lines of Melbourne’s entire suburban rail network.

I expect over time we’ll also see strong patronage growth for Melbourne’s Metro tunnel. It could be better, but it does represent a big upgrade over what was there before, especially for the western side of town.

It turns out people like a fast frequent reliable transit route through the heart of a busy city. Australian cities could do with more like this.

Update: Corrected text about the Martin Place metro to train connection. (Thanks to those who commented)

Media reports and the statement itself refer to them as hybrid, but they’re probably more accurately described as bi-mode.

It’s good to see the Coalition thinking about the future V/Line fleet, away from the VLocity train’s 25+ year old design, as well as addressing Melton capacity.

But as always, the devil is in the detail.

How much?

Firstly, the cost. The statement says $1.7 billion for 25 trains, presumably including any associated infrastructure works required, such as depot and stabling upgrades. That makes them $68 million each.

A follow-up statement from the Libs says these new trains would replace 25 diesel trains, to boost capacity on other lines. Makes sense.

But it also makes it clear that they’re talking about three car trains, not six car trains as I first assumed: Introducing new hybrid electric trains on the Melton and Wyndham Vale lines will free up 25 three car set V/Line trains to be deployed across the regional network, delivering more seats for regional passengers.

Okay, so if the $1.7b is for 25 x three car trains, how does that compare to recent train costs?

• The first 25 electric X’Trapolis 2.0 six car trains are costing $986 million, again including associated infrastructure upgrades. That’s $39.44 million each (or about $20 million per three cars)
• The order placed in 2023 for 23 diesel VLocity three car trains was $601 million, or $26 million each

John Hearsch from Rail Futures was right to highlight (Age, paywall) that these proposed trains are more expensive than other types. They appear to be 3.4 times the cost of X’Trapolis 2.0 electric trains, or 2.6 times the cost of diesel VLocity trains.

The ABC noted they hope to have them in service from 2030. Given NSW started their bi-mode train procurement in 2017 and they’re now expected in service from 2028, that seems very optimistic.

Where will they run?

If the new trains replace existing VLocity trains on outer suburban services, then we can assume they would replace existing peak short run paths – that makes sense because the RRL tracks are basically full in peak.

EDIT: I’m also assuming they would run in 6 car formations like the VLocities, so each train has a higher capacity.

The Libs’ statement also mentions “additional, potential City Loop services every hour during peaks on the Melton and Wyndham Vale lines” – and The Age’s article says Matthew Guy has proposed the extra trains “access suburban tracks after Sunshine and run through either the City Loop or Metro Tunnel”.

I suspect that would be challenging.

• If the new trains run through the Metro Tunnel, they would require the exact door configuration matching the HCMT fleet, because of the Platform Screen Doors in the tunnel stations. They’d also need CBTC in-cab signalling equipment.
• If they use the City Loop, it’s also complicated. Tracks connecting the Sunbury line to the Loop have been removed. If they are put back, then that adds another junction that reduces capacity, and eats into the capacity just freed up for the Craigieburn and Upfield lines in the Loop.
• The latter option reintroduces complex interactions between lines that have mostly been removed since the Metro Tunnel opened: V/Line Geelong, Ballarat, Bendigo lines interacting with the Sunbury line interacting with the Craigieburn/Upfield lines lines, interacting with the Seymour/Shepparton line. Each interaction reduces capacity and increases delays.
• Finally, what appetite for risk do the authorities have for regularly running diesel bi-mode trains regularly through underground tunnels (even if in electric mode)?

The best option would seem to be just using the existing paths, with capacity boosted thanks to trains carrying more people. (Of course they don’t need to be hybrid/bi-mode for this.)

The secondary benefit is freeing up VLocity trains to boost capacity elsewhere. That’s a big plus.

That includes the underserved Albury line – I have been told that some VLocities were built with provision for conversion to Standard Gauge, so yes, this is possible.

What happened to Melton electrification?

The Coalition say they would continue with Melton electrification alongside their plan. Their proposal is to get a capacity benefit sooner.

Labor’s answer to this is that in the short term, capacity is best boosted by running longer 9 car V/Line trains, rather than trying to create extra paths on congested tracks.

They’ve also told me in the past that Melton electrification is taking time because of the sequencing – level crossing removals and Melton station rebuild just finished, new stabling at Cobblebank, the Sunshine upgrade and untangling tracks around Tottenham, then electrification and track expansion.

The sequence seems to make sense – the problem is that it’s happening far later than it should have, especially for a project promised in 2018 – let alone considered since the 1970s.

(By the way: Matthew Guy on ABC Radio on Wednesday morning implied that the PTUA does not support track expansion. This is not correct. Audio here; begins at about 12 mins.)

The political disquiet about delayed progress on Melton capacity reminds me of a bigger version of the delays building Southland station a decade and a half ago.

The exact timeline for electrification is still unclear, and there’s also been no pledge for a much-needed additional station at Mt Atkinson.

So no wonder the Libs are looking to see what can be done sooner.

The quest for bi-mode trains is a good one, though not necessarily like this. It does need to happen, as a way of starting to transition V/Line from diesel to electric operation. And they need to find a way to bring the cost down.

And it’s good to see a focus on western Melbourne, an area which has been neglected on public transport for far too long, despite huge population growth.

By July, they had dug out the trench for the new rail line under the roads, and were starting to fill it back in again. Daytime:

Night:

One night I got invited to see the works up close

This view from the Brewer Road bridge from early July shows just how much was going on. (Click to zoom in)

24/7 works resulted in some local businesses, especially food shops, running 24/7 too

In daytime the construction drew considerable numbers of onlookers

At Ormond, they were building the value capture deck, but until late July, nobody knew it was there or what it was.

Working on the signalling

The night before McKinnon station would reopen, they were still putting on finishing touches.

…and it opened on time

…and featured in a video published the same day by local MP Nick Staikos… if you look very carefully you might be able to spot yours truly in it.

Works at Ormond and Bentleigh (shown here) continued:

Not all local businesses were appreciative of the project.

Meanwhile, early works for the Caulfield to Dandenong level crossing removals were getting started.

The fencing along the line was a sign that things were about to change.

This photo from Carnegie shows the change to the overhead wiring, using structures that would fit underneath the soon-to-be-built skyrail.

Elsewhere, life went on. Here’s a view of Market Street, with a train, tram and bus all passing. The safety zone in the foreground has since been removed, along with another stop, but trams still suffer long delays between Flinders Street and Collins Street.

The Melbourne Bike Share scheme ran from 2010 to 2019, arguably killed by the Free Tram Zone. Here’s a helmet dispenser at Southern Cross Station… looking empty.

What’s special about this is the 40 minute waits that passengers hate are finally gone.

They had been introduced in 1978 when Melbourne’s population was about half its current level, public transport patronage was falling, and Victorian Railways were desperately looking for savings. They cut then 30 minute frequencies to 40.

It’s meant there was a fundamental flaw in Melbourne’s suburban Metro train system. The reason urban rail systems work all over the world is that they make it convenient to get around big cities. From early in the morning to late at night, there’s a train to take you where you want to go.

Long waits break that contract.

In 1994 the PTUA began its “Seven day service for a seven day city” campaign. From 1996 the cuts began to be reversed.

It’s been a slow process, and until now, many lines still ran every 40 minutes in the mornings.

Over decades, I think this has done huge damage to the usability and reputation of the rail network. For more than two generations, everyone has known that you can’t depend on Melbourne’s trains to be there when you want them.

I can’t tell you how many conversations over the years I’ve had with people who are put off using the service because of low frequencies.

In some cases, they believed the 40 minute frequencies were still an issue, even on lines that had been upgraded. Long term reputational damage.

When you have to plan and consider carefully how to make your trip to avoid long waits, it actively drives people to get cars and get on the roads.

So, after PTUA (and others) stepped up their calls for fixes, it’s great that the politicians listened, and have provided funding to fix those remaining 40 minute waits, and upgrade them to 20 minutes.

It’s now really important that authorities promote the improvements, so that the generations of Melburnians who are wary of using the trains because of those 40 minute waits know that they’re now gone.

Other improvements such as Tap And Go and cheap fares also help, but nothing helps more than knowing the wait times are getting shorter.

These upgrades (and those announced but not arriving until next year) are not the end of the story. Many stations still have 30 minute waits at times, and 20 is no longer adequate for the backbone of the public transport network in a city of 5 million people. (Not to mention issues with service frequency on V/Line trains and coaches, trams, and especially buses).

But it’s a step forward, it’s a win, and it’s great to see it.

Join the PTUA to help with the next steps!

Notes:

• A small number of stations at the semi-rural end of the Hurstbridge line still have 40 minute waits due to single track beyond Eltham.
• So too do some suburban V/Line stations, particularly on weekends
• And no I haven’t forgotten the Stony Point line
• Update: As per the comments, there are issues around 8am on weekends with outbound services, as Night Network transitions to daytime operations, especially on Sunday morning. This includes the Frankston line, Sandringham, and stations beyond Dandenong.
• Does this mean not all of the 1978 cuts were fixed? No – because back then there were no services at all before about 8:30am on Sunday!