Just a few months after acquiring a prime Broadbeach site on the corner of First Avenue and Surf Parade, family-run developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/raptis">Raptis</a> has filed fresh plans for a new apartment development.

Raptis is seeking to deliver a <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/17-19-first-avenue-broadbeach-qld-4217">29-storey tower with 73 apartments</a> on the 818 sqm site. It will be the developer's seventh project in the suburb, as they are approaching completion of The Sterling on George Avenue.

There will be a pool, barbecue and outdoor dining area, residents lounge and dining, sauna and steam room, gym, and a Yoga and Pilates studio.

<img alt="Raptis" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b554da3f-7344-49aa-b1c9-44cf459af0d7" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-05%20at%2010.41.45%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=zzjWu1iO1wnuYv4EV4fyOyf5nSXjGYut" />

Raptis Joint Managing Director, Evan Raptis, says they remain&nbsp;committed to developing quality infill sites across the Gold Coast in the lead-up to the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.

"This project continues our long track record of delivery in Broadbeach, and we look forward to bringing another premium development to this thriving precinct."

The announcement follows strong delivery momentum for Raptis, with The Sterling Broadbeach nearing completion and construction well underway on the final stage of the Waterpoint community adjacent to Harbour Town. The developer's continued investment in the Gold Coast reflects confidence in the region's apartment market fundamentals, underpinned by sustained Southeast Queensland population growth.&nbsp;

The outlook for the region is further bolstered by infrastructure investment tied to the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games, which is expected to drive continued economic and population growth across the SEQ corridor.&nbsp;

Subject to a favourable response from Gold Coast City Council, construction on the new First Avenue tower is targeted to commence before the end of 2026.&nbsp;

Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/it-s-all-in-the-family-four-decades-later-raptis-continues-to-shape-the-gold-coast-skyline">It’s all in the family: Four decades later, Raptis continues to shape the Gold Coast skyline</a>

Read more: <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/qld/raptis-secures-prime-surf-parade-site-for-next-broadbeach-apartment-development">Raptis secures prime Surf Parade site for next Broadbeach apartment development</a> 
&nbsp;

Gold Coast developer brings seventh Broadbeach project to market, targeting construction commencement before year end

Joel Robinson

First look: Raptis lodges plans for new 29-storey Broadbeach tower 

Brisbane development veteran Kevin Seymour's Seymour Group is set to deepen its presence on one of Brisbane's most tightly held riverfront addresses, lodging revised plans for a luxury apartment development on Oxlade, just a few doors down from The Oxlade, which it completed in 2024.

The <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/70-72-oxlade-drive-new-farm-qld-4005">new project at 70-72 Oxlade Drive</a>, directly north of The Oxlade, will have 27 apartments across a seven-storey building&nbsp;overlooking the Brisbane River and Merthyr Park. It's a revision from a 2021-approved design.

Designed by bureau^proberts, the project has evolved from the previously approved 26-apartment scheme, introducing an additional penthouse level while maintaining a low-density, boutique character. The development will comprise 26 three-bedroom apartments and a single four-bedroom penthouse, supported by two basement levels with 86 car spaces and 34 bicycle spaces.

The architectural response is centred around two distinct building forms separated by a landscaped open-air atrium.&nbsp;"This dual composition captures and embraces Brisbane’s subtropical environment whilst breaking down built form and scale," the submission to the Brisbane City Council noted.

<img alt="First look: Seymour Group returns to Oxlade Drive with revised riverfront apartment plans in New Farm" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="c12d84d0-bc11-4067-b46f-5bd2d786a34d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/new%20farm%20landscape.png?VersionId=YEPc2k5CAdh6aAPlu4uVpgZadh4MEfRd" />

A defining feature of the design is a deep landscaped void running through the centre of the building, creating what bureau^proberts describes as a "natural ravine" that enhances airflow, daylight penetration and resident amenity. The design report notes that the separation of the two building volumes is intended to maximise natural light, cross-ventilation and outlook while strengthening connections to the surrounding riverfront setting.

Curved balcony edges, integrated planting and extensive landscaping throughout the façade reinforce the subtropical design approach. The building's façade is softened by elevated gardens and planter beds, creating a green edge that complements the established landscape character of Oxlade Drive and neighbouring Merthyr Park.

New Farm has become one of Brisbane's most sought-after suburbs for developers delivering premium downsizer-focused apartments.

GRAYA has been particularly active in the precinct, completing both Chalk and York in recent years, while construction of Moray House, being delivered for Spyre, is now nearing completion. Architect-turned-developer Joe Adsett recently launched <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/arcilla-new-farm-by-joe-adsett-28-maxwell-street-new-farm-qld-4005">Arcilla on Maxwell Street</a>, an exclusive collection of just nine apartments.

First look: Seymour Group returns to New Farm's Oxlade Drive with riverfront apartment plans

A new residential tower will be the first piece of a broader mixed-use precinct set to reshape a prominent Newcastle West site, with local developer <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/gwh">GWH</a> bringing its <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/cambridge-quarter-newcastle-west-12-denison-street-newcastle-west-nsw-2302">Cambridge Quarter</a> vision to market.

The first release, Tempo, will introduce 87 apartments across a 24-storey tower, marking Stage 1 of the residential component of a larger urban regeneration project planned for the western end of Newcastle's city centre, encompassing the former Cambridge Hotel site.

Positioned on Denison Street, Tempo has been designed as the inaugural building within Cambridge Quarter, a precinct that will ultimately combine apartments, retail activation and revitalised public spaces including the revamping of the Cambridge Hotel.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368853]

The tower will comprise a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments, including layouts with multipurpose rooms, catering to a broad cross-section of owner-occupiers. Apartment sizes range from around 60 sqm to 192 sqm, with a number of residences oriented to capture views across Newcastle Harbour, the city skyline and coastline.

GWH has emphasised liveability in the design, with open-plan layouts extending to generous balconies and terraces. Residents will have a choice of two interior palettes, while specifications include engineered stone benchtops, SMEG appliances, full-height bathroom tiling and secure building access. Premium upgrade packages will also be available.

Multiple rooftop resident retreats will provide communal outdoor space overlooking the harbour and city, offering an elevated amenity layer above the activity of the precinct below.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368851]

The broader Cambridge Quarter vision extends beyond the residential tower itself. Ground-level retail activation and landscaped public areas are planned throughout the precinct, creating a walkable neighbourhood environment connected to the surrounding renewal of Newcastle West. The Cambridge Hotel is also earmarked for future redevelopment into a family-friendly hospitality venue integrated with the new precinct.

The project is strategically positioned within walking distance of Newcastle Interchange, providing access to light rail, regional rail services and direct connections to Sydney. Residents will also be close to Honeysuckle, Newcastle Harbour and the city's beaches and coastal walkways.

[smartcode_project:default project_id=135876 project_image_fid=368852]

For GWH, Cambridge Quarter represents one of its most significant Newcastle developments to date. The locally based developer, which has operated in the Hunter region since 1995, describes the project as a new chapter in the ongoing transformation of Newcastle West.

GWH Executive Director Jonathan Craig said the project had been shaped by a focus on creating lasting community connections.

"We take pride in creating places that last. Spaces where people feel connected, comfortable and a genuine sense of belonging," Craig said.

"Cambridge Quarter is something we are truly proud of, a place shaped by local knowledge, built with care and designed to be part of Newcastle's next chapter."

[smartcode_project_cta:default project_id=135876]

GWH unveils first release at landmark Cambridge Quarter precinct in Newcastle West

<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/ss-projects">S&amp;S Projects</a>,&nbsp;Rainbow Bay's busiest developer,&nbsp;has officially lodged plans for the largest development in its booming local portfolio, seeking approval for a further 88 apartments on Boundary Street.

The proposal&nbsp;at <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/209-213-boundary-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">209–213 Boundary Street, Coolangatta</a>,&nbsp;marks the next chapter in the developer's transformation of the southern Gold Coast beachside precinct. It will be its fifth in the area, having already delivered Flow, Awaken and Esprit, while construction continues on the 38-apartment Radia. The new project would rise 57 metres above a consolidated 1,518 sqm site, on the same street as Radia and Esprit.

&nbsp;

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/cottee-parker-architects">Cottee Parker</a>, the proposed development comprises 88 two and three-bedroom apartments across a contemporary podium-and-tower form that integrates extensive landscaping from street level through to the rooftop.

The tower would be delivered above a basement and multi-level podium accommodating resident and visitor parking, with the residential component commencing from level three. The design incorporates cascading planting throughout the façade, landscaped podium edges, and deep planting zones along the Boundary Street frontage.

<img alt="First look: S&amp;S Projects lodges plans for 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="677e6615-b5c0-4b6c-b4f9-efb14fcde1a6" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/ss%20da%20pers.png?VersionId=YOnPKQm7IFXv0M5H326djEpxk80500Hi" />

A key feature of the development is its expansive rooftop wellness and recreation precinct. Plans reveal a resort-style pool deck, gymnasium, sauna, steam room, hot and cold plunge pools, rooftop terraces, barbecue areas and landscaped relaxation spaces positioned to capture views across the southern Gold Coast coastline.

The rooftop wellness focus builds on the vision S&amp;S Projects first outlined when it acquired the site for $20.25 million last year.

"We are taking every advantage to create a truly unique rooftop wellness experience with a natural feel for residents, offering stone features throughout and an underlying theme that emulates a botanical garden," S&amp;S Projects founder and director Paul Gedoun said at the time.

The proposal seeks a 57-metre building height, representing a 50 per cent uplift on the site's mapped 38-metre height limit. Planning documents argue the additional height is consistent with recently approved and emerging towers in the immediate Boundary Street and Rainbow Bay precinct.

Urbis, acting as planning consultant, said the development would provide "88 dwellings, comprising a mix of two and three-bedroom apartments, contributing to housing choice and supply within an established medium to high-rise coastal urban neighbourhood."

The scheme has undergone extensive pre-lodgement consultation with the City of Gold Coast, with the design refined following feedback relating to architectural expression, landscaping, traffic access and podium treatment.

<img alt="S&amp;S" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="0a2d70fd-62ac-4b83-97c6-b798fc1243dd" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Screenshot%202026-06-05%20at%209.16.31%E2%80%AFAM.png?VersionId=yHmghUwKM3IVGpBktQU1mE.0Lpf3WimG" />

The architectural team is led by Brisbane-based Cottee Parker, one of Australia's most active residential design studios, with landscape architecture by Dunn + Moran. The consultant team also includes ADG Engineers, Windtech and Acoustic Works.

S&amp;S Projects has become one of the most influential private developers operating on the southern Gold Coast. Since entering Rainbow Bay in 2022, the company has assembled a portfolio exceeding $1 billion in end value, establishing itself as a key player in the area's evolution into a premium apartment destination. Pezet Matheson will again handle the sales for S&amp;S.

Coolangatta is entering another wave of apartment development, following the delivery of several prominent residential projects in recent years.

John Kearney's Immerse Projects will launch&nbsp;<a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/kaiya-kirra-beach-5-haig-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Kaiya on Haig Street</a>&nbsp;soon, meanwhile, Palm Beach-based Sherpa Property Group is preparing to bring its debut Coolangatta development, <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/new-apartments/flourish-viver-87-griffith-street-coolangatta-qld-4225">Flourish Viveré</a>, to market later this year, subject to approvals.

First look: S&S Projects proposes 88-apartment wellness tower at Coolangatta's Boundary Street

A landmark former orphanage site in Surrey Hills could be transformed into a new residential community under plans lodged by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/developers/antipodean-land-developments">Antipodean Land Developments</a> that would deliver 76 apartments and townhouses while restoring some of the suburb's most significant heritage buildings.

The burgeoninng Melbourne-based developer has submitted plans for the 9,158 sqm site at 1 Kent Road and 24 Durham Road, home to the former St Joseph's Home for Destitute Children, a historic institutional complex dating back to the late 19th century. The proposal seeks to adaptively reuse several heritage buildings while introducing two new four-storey residential buildings set within extensive landscaped grounds.

Designed by <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/architects/woods-bagot">Woods Bagot</a> and Kerstin Thompson Architects, the project has been conceived as a contemporary residential village embedded within a restored heritage precinct. The development team describes the design approach as "The Village in the Garden," with new buildings positioned among mature landscaping by OCULUS and significant heritage structures.

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="44ec8c1b-c0b6-44ae-859e-5811b3e6a023" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%281%29.png?VersionId=p.p1_KFh4iQoV4nisdnPfQBAsWNi7m79" />

The proposal would deliver 76 dwellings comprising a mix of apartments and duplex-style residences, significantly increasing housing supply on one of the largest privately held residential landholdings in Surrey Hills. The development includes 127 car spaces, 24 bicycle spaces and more than 1,000 sqm of communal amenity, with the existing chapel building earmarked for conversion into resident facilities.

According to the planning submission, the project centres on the restoration and adaptive reuse of the site's most significant heritage assets, including the original c.1889 St Joseph's building, the chapel designed by architect Augustus Andrew Fritsch, and the historic brick perimeter walls and entry gates. The proposal also incorporates the retention of other contributory buildings including the former infirmary and school building.

Tract Consultants, in the planning report accompanying the application, said the scheme had been shaped through extensive heritage analysis and design development.

"The shared vision for the Site by the project team has culminated in a scheme which successfully breathes life back into a historic site while delivering upon the objectives of Victoria's Housing Statement in a carefully curated and contextually responsive manner."

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="7263b7d8-95ea-400f-9531-6ca7d22c3c33" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design%20%282%29.png?VersionId=4cR1tiWOsDpgxEOwZi5vVFcyvvOsYkIE" />

The proposal is being assessed under Victoria's Significant Residential Development with Affordable Housing pathway. As part of the application, three per cent of the project's residential development cost would be contributed to the Social Housing Growth Fund. The development would also provide a diverse mix of one, two and three-bedroom residences targeting a broader range of buyers than typically found in Surrey Hills' detached housing market.

Sustainability initiatives include an anticipated 66 per cent BESS score, natural cross-ventilation to 80 per cent of apartments, 28 per cent deep soil landscaping and a canopy cover outcome exceeding local planning requirements. The proposal also sets aside more than 1,083 sqm for communal indoor and outdoor resident amenity spaces.

<img alt="First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="33fad46f-fe26-4d0a-acfd-6b776e1c6a3d" src="https://s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/inline-images/Untitled%20design.png?VersionId=D9F6WVSyYCtGvSUmith35LRp6R7PQkw_" />

Planning documents describe the property as one of the largest underutilised residential sites in Surrey Hills, arguing it presents a rare opportunity to introduce "missing middle" housing in an established inner-eastern suburb while preserving and revitalising a significant heritage precinct.

Antipodean Land Developments has built a reputation for design-focused residential projects across Melbourne, particularly in the medium-density sector. Previous developments include Neighbourhood in Brunswick East, delivered with Breathe Architecture, and Balfe Park Lane, designed by Kerstin Thompson Architects.

They've been very active in site acquisition as they build out their future development pipeline. They recently launched Thornubury House, 45 apartments above a mix of commercial, retail, and food and beverage tenancies, and have plans for a boutique project in Fitzroy and another <a href="https://www.apartments.com.au/news/vic/antipodean-plan-apartments-for-deepdenes-missing-middle-on-whitehorse-road">"missing middle" project</a> on Deepdene's Whitehorse Road.

First look: Antipodean Land Developments plans heritage-led apartment community in Surrey Hills

Airports

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Adelaide Airport will begin immediate construction on a $165 million expansion which will expand floor space, shopping and dining areas as well as expand international departure and arrival space.

Work is set to begin in earnest with the key focus of the expansion being on improving the passenger departure and arrival experience, <a href="https://www.adelaideairport.com.au/corporate/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/nr-terminal-expansion-14.6-final.pdf">a statement</a> from the airport says.

When the new terminal opened in 2005, Adelaide Airport gained a single terminal for both international and domestic flights.  Unique among the major capital airports in Australia (however Canberra has since joined Adelaide in this respect), some gates could be ringfenced and secured for international departures and arrivals or switched back for domestic use.

The new expansion will see this 'swing configuration' continue however a single gate - number 18 - will become a permanent international gate where the focus of improving international passenger facilities will be.

A second international baggage claim belt will be added in the international arrivals hall and a new common user premium lounge will be constructed.

Other improvements include relocation of the Virgin Australia lounge and an expansion of office space for airlines and regulatory authorities based at the airport.

<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" scrolling="no" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SseeZna6lvU" width="100%"></iframe>

<blockquote>
Since we opened the existing terminal in 2005, our overall passenger numbers have increased by close to 50 per cent.

Our international passenger numbers alone have almost tripled over the same period. This extraordinary growth means we need to keep growing our existing facilities.

While we still have sufficient gate capacity to meet future forecast growth in the number of flights, we’re reaching capacity within the terminal.

This expansion will allow us to be fit-for-purpose based on our future growth forecasts.
<cite>Adelaide Airport Managing Director, Mark Young</cite>
</blockquote>

Virgin Australia's Group Executive, Rob Sharp, said: "the relocation of the Virgin Australia Lounge presents an exciting opportunity and we look forward to sharing more detail on our plans in due course."

The expansion is going to see a 'complete refurbishment of retail areas, resulting in a more than 80 per cent increase in the overall size of the terminal’s retail and dining precinct across domestic and international areas,' according to an airport statement.

Federal Government statistics show Adelaide's busiest domestic route is to Melbourne with 2 475,200 people flying between the city pair over the year ending March 31st, 2018.

This compares with Australia's busiest city pair, Melbourne-Sydney, which sees 9 191,700 passengers fly between the two cities.

For the year ending March 31st, 2018, Adelaide saw 985,748 people use the airport on international flights and if it continues to grow at the rate it did over the past 12 months, it could join the top 5 international airports in Australia within a few years.  Gold Coast is currently in 5th spot with 1,079,568 flying in and out internationally.

Watpac has been appointed builder for the expansion and work is set to be completed in 2021.

Lead image credit: Adelaide Airport.
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Alastair Taylor

Adelaide Airport starts $165 million expansion

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The advocacy group behind the 'AirTrain' rail vision for Victoria has called on the $5 billion to be allocated in the Federal budget to be deployed on a Melbourne Airport Rail Link that will benefit not just the city, but the state.

Citing the four routes from a 5-year-old study that was on display at the Prime Ministers press conference at the airport last week, the Rail Futures Institute says none of them include meaningful connections from the airport to regional areas.

Not impressed with a direct route via the Maribyrnong defense site - which the Federal Government owns and is actively looking to unload from the balance sheet - RFI says rail to Melbourne Airport would likely be delayed due to widespread decontamination works required.

<blockquote>
The Rail Futures AirTrain proposal is the only serious Melbourne Airport rail option that includes direct connections from the airport to regional rail lines.

Fully executed, AirTrain would link Tullamarine to the Bendigo and Seymour/Shepparton/Albury lines and provide an efficient interchange to the Ballarat and Geelong lines and the coming Melbourne Metro line at a newly expanded station at Sunshine.

All other metropolitan lines and the Gippsland line would connect at Southern Cross station.

Rail Futures’ proposal will provide dedicated airport trains with large luggage spaces running every 10 minutes, stopping only at Sunshine, and take 15 minutes for the journey – half the average 30-minute duration of other proposals.

Partly in-tunnel, the AirTrain railway would be an entirely new build that would not share tracks with much slower metropolitan trains.

“The best airport rail links are dedicated builds with minimal stations between the airport and the city,” Mr Hearsch said. 

“Many overseas airports also have regional trains stopping at the airport station. We envisage that Melbourne Airport will progressively become a major public transport hub, with both heavy and light rail connections, a tram extension from Airport West and a greatly expanded network of metropolitan bus services, providing serious alternatives to our current car dependency.”
<cite>Rail Futures Institute <a href="http://www.railfutures.org.au/2018/04/rfi-media-release-on-federal-governments-melbourne-airport-commitment/">media release</a>.</cite>
</blockquote>

The concept of a public transport hub at Melbourne Airport is gaining traction with some advocates calling for a more comprehensive ground transport plan for the area which would include projects like extending tram routes and creating new high-frequency bus services to areas not directly served by an airport rail link.

These areas that would not be served directly by an airport rail link are to Melbourne's middle-outer north, given that most rail alignment proposals are either running directly north-west from the city, swing via Sunshine in the west or use the Craigieburn train line. 

In the 'AirTrain' vision, people living in or traveling to the East, South East or South from the airport, broadly consistent with an arc sweeping from the Lilydale line to the Frankston and Sandringham lines, would use their local train service and then be able to make a connection to the new airport link.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/rfi_airtrain.png" rel="gallery-all" title="The alignment of RFI's 'AirTrain' vision"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="392" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/rfi_airtrain.png?itok=Ms7zK8gY" title="The alignment of RFI's 'AirTrain' vision" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>The alignment of RFI's 'AirTrain' vision</figcaption></figure>With an intermediate stop at Sunshine, people traveling on the Sunbury line, eventually an electrified Melton line, the Geelong &amp; Warrnambool lines as well as the Ballarat-Ararat/Maryborough lines will all be able to make a connection outside of the centre of the city.

Sunshine already enjoys a very high amount of accessibility on rail-based public transport - a Melbourne Airport Rail Link would increase this accessibility markedly to an area which at present has just under 15,000 jobs.

The Sunshine National Employment and Innovation Cluster <a href="https://vpa.vic.gov.au/project/sunshine-employment-cluster/">planning work</a> is set to facilitate both employment and diversified mixed-use residential growth in the region.

Lead image credit: <a href="http://www.railfutures.org.au/2017/12/hume-rail-corridor-presentation/">RFI</a>
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Rail Futures Institute calls on Melbourne Airport Rail Link to be built for all Victorians

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The Prime Minister this morning, at a press conference on the departures level at Melbourne Airport, announced the Federal Government will allocate $5 billion in this year's budget to kick start the construction of a Melbourne Airport Rail Link (MARL).

In last year's budget $30 million was allocated from Federal Coffers - and matched by Spring Street to the tune of $20 million - to pay for a study which would figure out a way to accelerate the rollout of the MARL.

That study is still underway and at a press conference, the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Federal Treasurer and Minister for Revenue and Financial Services, stood next to a map of Melbourne which depicted 4 possible routes the rail line might take.

Those routes were first foreshadowed under the Napthine Government in their MARL study - see a summary of that study <a href="https://static.ptv.vic.gov.au/siteassets/PTV/PTV%20docs/Feasibility-Studies/Melbourne-Airport-Rail-Link-Study-Overview-brochure.pdf">here</a>.

The State Government was apparently made aware of this Federal Government commitment via a letter sent to the Premier on Wednesday night, after the Federal Government dropped the story in the lap of some of the Herald Sun's press gallery journalists.

When the Prime Minister was pressed on this at the media conference, he responded with "oh well look its very important that Melburnians are enthused and engaged, we want everyone in Melbourne to have their say in this, we want this to be a project that enlivens and excites the whole city, the whole state".

The Federal Treasurer, Scott Morrison said that "this nationally important project for Tulla-rail will be the single largest infrastructure commitment in this year's budget and it'll be there for Victoria and the people for Melbourne and as the deputy prime minister I'm sure will say, well beyond the Melbourne [airport] precinct here".

The Planning work is still underway and despite standing next to a map which was devised five years earlier, no other information was divulged at the press conference - nothing on whether the study is taking into account the changes that are occurring to the Melbourne rail network, now that the city is in high growth mode.

Originally, the Napthine Government saw the Melbourne Airport Rail Link as an extension of the new Pakenham/Cranbourne to Sunbury/Melton metro line - there would be a Melbourne Airport and Rowville branch built in phase 3 according to the older network development plans.

On Tuesday the State Government announced what would have been a heavy rail line to Rowville is now a light rail line via Monash University, Chadstone to Caulfield.  

The Rail Futures Institute has been one external to government organisation that has long held a vision for the Melbourne Airport Rail Link that goes well beyond servicing just Melbourne and its airport, but includes a second phase that would pave the way for regional trains heading to Bendigo, Echuca and Swan Hill as well as Seymour and Shepparton to be completely separated from the metro network as well.

In a November 2017 speech to the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Geelong, the Premier hinted at the MARL would resemble something like the Rail Futures Institute vision with a focus on connecting the state, not just Melburnians to the airport.

"It can't just be an expensive funnel for tourists and businesspeople between the CBD and airport.  Instead, it can transform the way people live, work and travel across Victoria. In our view, the airport rail link has the potential to unlock western and northern Victoria."

The Rail Futures Institute's vision would see three tunnels - one from Southern Cross to Tottenham, another at Sunshine, and the last tunnel at Melbourne airport, where a second phase would then connect the airport to the Bendigo line at Clarkefield and the Seymour-Shepparton line at Wallan.  The Sunshine and Footscray tunneling segments would likely be approximately 10-11km in length with only one station at Sunshine.

The Federal Government, it has been reported, is more keen on a direct line from Melbourne via Victoria University in Footscray, Highpoint, the land it owns in Maribyrnong on the old arms manufacturing site and at Milleara and Buckley Street bordering Avondale Heights and Keilor East.  This proposal would require upwards of 13km of tunnels and 4 underground stations.

At Melbourne Airport, under a Rail Futures Vision scenario, the station would be underground thus requiring tunnels that could be built over two phases with an underground station.  If the Federal Government's favoured direct route via the Maribyrnong defence site is chosen and would only operate as a City-Airport line with no other regional connections, it's conceivable a cheaper elevated terminus station could be built at the airport.

The Federal Treasurer said the study will be complete by September/October.

<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FofficeofthePMAU%2Fvideos%2F1489456684497654%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe>

Lead image credit: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Melbourne_Airport_VIC_3045,_Australia_-_panoramio_(1).jpg">wikipedia</a>.
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Federal Government wants to tip $5 billion into a Melbourne Airport Rail Link

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Air Asia is set to shift its double daily Kuala Lumpur flights from Tullamarine to Avalon with a new international terminal and associated border, customs and quarantine facilities set to open toward the end of 2018.

At an event attended by the Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, State Minister for Industry and Employment Bend Carroll and State Minister for Tourism and local member John Eren, it was also announced that the new international facilities at Avalon will be capable of export 14 tonnes of fresh produce per day.

Air Asia CEO Tony Fernades was also in attendance and Federal member for Corangamite, Sarah Henderson, tweeted that Air Asia wanted to fly to Thailand and Indonesia as well.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
Wonderful to be joined by <a href="https://twitter.com/JulieBishopMP?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JulieBishopMP</a> for this incredible announcement. The sky’s the limit for <a href="https://twitter.com/AvalonAirportAU?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AvalonAirportAU</a> international airport. Two flights a day from KL, almost 500,000 passengers pa &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/tonyfernandes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@tonyfernandes</a> wants to introduce Bali &amp; Thai flights. Wow! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/celebrateCorangamite?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#celebrateCorangamite</a> <a href="https://t.co/1H2BurWdM3">pic.twitter.com/1H2BurWdM3</a>
— Sarah Henderson MP (@SHendersonMP) <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://twitter.com/SHendersonMP/status/959947427825385472?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 4, 2018</a>
</blockquote>

Air Asia's current Tullamarine - Kuala Lumpur double daily flights are flown by A330-300s which have 12 premium economy and 365 economy seats. 

Assuming a double daily schedule is flown year round, this represents a touch over 275,000 available seats in each direction.

The CEO of Air Asia said via <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-04/avalon-airport-to-get-international-services-to-kuala-lumpur/9386336">the ABC</a> "I firmly believe this is a turning point in our great dream of making Australian and south-east Asia and Asia much much closer."

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/klia2_flickr_cc_by_sa.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Air Asia operates out of KLIA2 in the Malaysian Capital - image: flickr"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="435" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/klia2_flickr_cc_by_sa.jpg?itok=pmhttL5l" title="Air Asia operates out of KLIA2 in the Malaysian Capital - image: flickr" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Air Asia operates out of KLIA2 in the Malaysian Capital - image: <a href="https://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8656/16642762245_59744d970e_b.jpg">flickr</a></figcaption></figure>Air Asia operates out of the new, vast, 'KLIA2' (Kuala Lumpur International Airport - Terminal 2) in the Malaysian Capital which is located approximately 50 km south of the city centre.  KL's airport is linked with its urban heart via the KLIA Ekspress rail service and the Malaysian capital's large freeway/tollway network

<h2>Comment</h2>

Well, it happened at last, Avalon will become an international airport.  The new investment is welcome but one can't help but feel for people arriving at Avalon. 

As it is, this represents moving of entire operations between airports, I'll be watching to see if Air Asia maintains double daily frequencies.  The airline is known to vary its flights to Tullamarine depending on the season - will its customers cop the extra distance to the get to/from the airport?

Regardless, the export handling capacity at Avalon that will be built as part of what was announced today seems to suggest whomever flies internationally into Avalon is likely to bank on taking a slice of the cargo market as well.

Lead image credit: <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:YMAV.jpg">wikipedia</a>
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Avalon Airport says 'selamat datang' to Air Asia as new international facilities are announced

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Melbourne Airport has hit a new passenger milestone with its August 2017 passenger data confirming 10 million passengers had been clocked through the international terminal over the previous 12 months.

<blockquote>
For the first time in the airport’s 47-year history, 10 million international passengers passed through the doors in a rolling 12-month period. That’s a five-fold increase since privatisation in 1997.

The airport’s latest passenger data revealed more than 850,000 international travellers took international trips in August 2017, a 9.7 per cent increase compared to the same time last year.
<a href="http://melbourneairport.com.au/about-melbourne-airport/media/media-releases/melbourne-airport-passenger-performance-august-2017"><cite>Melbourne Airport Media release</cite></a>
</blockquote>

On a month-to-month comparison, in August 2017, 853,253 passengers travelled on international services and there were 2,097,857 domestic passengers.  This represents 9.7% growth compared to August 2016 for international and 3.6% growth in domestic numbers.

Over the short to medium term it's not hard to see how this growth will continue.  

Australia Pacific Airports - the owner of the leasehold and operator of Tullamarine airport - says the numbers will be boosted further by new services to China with Jetstar beginning services to Zhengzhou and Xiamen Airlines kicking off flights to Hangzhou.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/west_lake_hangzhou.jpg" rel="gallery-all" title="Hangzhou's West Lake - China Daily"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="387" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/west_lake_hangzhou.jpg?itok=L_RKUBxl" title="Hangzhou's West Lake - China Daily" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>Hangzhou's <a href="https://www.google.com.au/maps/place/West+Lake/@30.2587323,120.1428134,6344m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x344b62c0d149f2cb:0xf0f28861cfd37ec9!8m2!3d30.2427011!4d120.1502699">West Lake</a> - China Daily</figcaption></figure>As Apartments.com.au previously reported, we're finally set to get a second non-stop mainland North American destination - Vancouver - with Air Canada kicking off a 4 times weekly seasonal service from December this year through to February next year.  Air Canada has subsequently decided to restart and make the services permanent from <a href="http://australianaviation.com.au/2017/09/air-canada-schedules-year-round-flights-for-melbourne/">June 2018 flying three-times weekly</a>.  

The first non-stop flight to a South American destination - Santiago de Chile - will begin next month and at the beginning of September Japan Airlines kicked off its Tokyo-Narita - Melbourne service.  

The roll-call of Chinese cities to have a non-stop service to Melbourne is pushing upwards of 10 cities.  Air China, China Eastern and China Southern have the lion's share with multiple daily flights to the big three - Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou - however the aviation network from Melbourne is well and truly established amongst the mid-tier cities.

At any rate, the morning <a href="http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showpost.php?p=141817842&amp;postcount=12701">departures from Melbourne Airport are set to be very busy</a> with multiple mid-tier Chinese cities in the mix. 

Lead image credit: <a href="http://melbourneairport.com.au/about-melbourne-airport/media/photo-gallery">Melbourne Airport</a>.
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Tullamarine hits a new passenger milestone

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<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ian-woodcock-150260">Ian Woodcock</a>, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063">RMIT University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/iain-lawrie-387154">Iain Lawrie</a>, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722">University of Melbourne</a>

Melburnians have been talking about a <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/wait-for-train-to-tullamarine-now-55-years-20121230-2c1c1">train to Tullamarine Airport</a> since well before it opened. Now Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has made clear his enthusiasm for an <a href="https://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&amp;rct=j&amp;q=&amp;esrc=s&amp;source=web&amp;cd=1&amp;cad=rja&amp;uact=8&amp;ved=0ahUKEwiGkr_squLUAhWDXLwKHT4fC3gQqUMIKDAA&amp;url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.heraldsun.com.au%2Fnews%2Fvictoria%2Fmelbourne-airport-rail-link-may-be-built-without-victorian-funding%2Fnews-story%2F2ef855853e494fc9fbd6261611a48085&amp;usg=AFQjCNFDRAYD7hlo0NmWHwvsN0zEZAu0Xg">airport rail line</a>, with or without state government support.

But these conversations need to move beyond the question of getting travellers between their plane and their city hotel.

Beyond airport access, this proposal highlights the potential for rail projects to shape Melbourne and feed an integrated public transport system that could serve its growing population.

<h2>How railways shape our cities</h2>

Transport investment shapes cities, but different modes <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://www.routledge.com/Transport-Planning-2nd-Edition/Banister/p/book/9780415261722">have diverse effects</a>.

Freeways, tollways and arterial roads (used by cars, taxis, ride-sharing services and buses, as well as trucks) encourage cities to extend horizontally at low densities. Rail-based modes (trams, light rail and trains, both passenger and freight) encourage <a href="https://islandpress.org/book/the-transit-metropolis">intensification of corridors and centres</a>.

Melbourne has concentrated most of its post-war transport investment on road-based transport. It has done very little to extend the enormous rail-based legacy of trams and trains built during the first century of European settlement. This is despite transport plans that proposed <a href="http://www.hawthorntramdepot.org.au/papers/gs1923.htm">doubling the tramway system</a> in 1923, and adding <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/https://library.intranet.vic.gov.au/client/search/asset/1286832">several new railway lines</a> – including to Doncaster, Rowville, and between Dandenong and Frankston.

Until 2015, the only major investment in suburban rail since the 1950s was the City Loop, which opened in 1981 after a decade of construction.

The City Loop’s clear legacy has been the transformation of Melbourne’s CBD into one of the highest-density mixed-use precincts in Australia. This has driven some of the <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/C508DD213FD43EA7CA258148000C6BBE?OpenDocument">fastest growth in residential population</a> anywhere in the country.

The demonstrated desirability of apartment living in urban centres, driven by the accessibility delivered by metro-quality public transport, shows how investment in rail-based transport can reshape cities. While many have advocated this for decades, the precedents have primarily been European or North American.

Australians now have homegrown experience of what transit-oriented urbanism could mean. Sydney has many examples of substantial rail-based suburban intensification. Centres such as Chatswood, Bondi Junction, St Leonards, Strathfield and Wolli Creek (close to Sydney Airport) offer insight into opportunities for Melbourne and elsewhere.

<h2>Airport rail can give structure to city’s growing west</h2>

A 25-minute metro journey from Melbourne’s Southern Cross station to the airport via Maribyrnong would appear time-competitive with the profitable and popular <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/skybus-fares-hit-new-high-as-company-jacks-up-price-of-ticket-to-melbourne-airport-20160322-gnonk6">SkyBus service</a>.

However, unlike SkyBus, rail has the potential to fundamentally reshape Melbourne’s northwestern corridor.

A metro line to the airport east of the currently favoured Albion corridor could realise the considerable intensification potential of many sites along its route. This is no bad thing. Melbourne’s population is projected to rise to <a href="https://www.planning.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0014/14036/Victoria-in-Future-2016-FINAL-web.pdf">8 million by 2051</a>, with disproportionate growth in the western suburbs.

Although exact alignments are up for grabs, significant urban renewal potential exists at Flemington, Footscray, Highpoint, the former Maribyrnong Defence site, Essendon Fields, Airport West, Tullamarine, and at the airport itself.

By directly investing in rail infrastructure, the federal government would reap the benefits of the land it owns and unlock the potential of many other locations. This is what integrating public transport and land-use planning looks like. And the urban outcome is vastly different from the current paradigm of road-driven transport and land-use planning.

<h2>Realising the full potential of an integrated transport system</h2>

A rail link won’t provide for all of the access demands for travel to and from the airport.

For that to occur, a comprehensive <a href="https://www.ptua.org.au/policy/network/">multi-modal network</a> solution that serves a much wider catchment is needed. There will always be people living beyond an easy stroll to a train station. Their needs can only be met by a radical rethink of Melbourne’s buses in addition to rail-based investment.

However, the latest proposal offers alternative ways to think about long-promised rail lines – such as Doncaster and Rowville – as part of a network, linking intensified suburban centres.

Some lines have the ability to do what Infrastructure Victoria <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.infrastructurevictoria.com.au/node/78">has recommended</a> to increase development densities in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, using light rail. For example, connecting Doncaster to the suburbs to its south and east, as well as its west, will provide great potential for intensification.

For Rowville, a light rail to Gardenvale will provide better public transport integration while maximising intensification potential.

Other comparable cities are realising the most effective combinations of public transport and land-use investment with light rail. In Montreal, Canada, the Quebec Pension Fund is investing in <a href="https://www.cdpqinfra.com/en/Reseau_electrique_metropolitain">67 kilometres of driverless light rail</a>. This will link the city’s airport with urban redevelopment zones and existing metro lines to create a city-wide multi-modal network.

In Melbourne, thinking about the city-shaping potential of rail-based transport should focus minds on the priority to <a href="https://www.propertyobserver.com.au/http://www.infrastructurevictoria.com.au/node/77">plan and build Melbourne Metro 2</a>. This would provide a tunnel between Clifton Hill and Newport, creating a cross-town metro from Wyndham Vale to Mernda via Fishermans Bend, which is currently bereft of quality public transport.

Melbourne Metro 2 would also improve the chances that <a href="http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/new-suburb-in-melbournes-west-given-the-nod-as-winning-bidder-selected-20151105-gkre9i">Werribee East</a> can realise its potential.

Turnbull is to be congratulated for his reported support for airport rail. But we should be wary of losing sight of the wood for the trees – or, more accurately, the network for the line.

<img alt="The Conversation" height="1" src="https://counter.theconversation.edu.au/content/80203/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" width="1">Victoria urgently needs a transport plan premised on integrated public transport and land-use planning. Only then might it work toward a liveable city for 8 million people.

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/ian-woodcock-150260">Ian Woodcock</a>, Lecturer, School of Global, Urban &amp; Social Studies, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/rmit-university-1063">RMIT University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/iain-lawrie-387154">Iain Lawrie</a>, Sessional Lecturer in Urban Planning, <a href="http://theconversation.com/institutions/university-of-melbourne-722">University of Melbourne</a>

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/airport-rail-link-can-open-up-new-possibilities-for-the-rest-of-melbourne-80203">original article</a>.
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theconversation

Airport rail link can open up new possibilities for the rest of Melbourne

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<h2>Comment</h2>

At first, there was $10 million on the table in the Victorian Budget.  And when it was time for Canberra to hand down its budget, that figure swelled to $30 million.  In short, whatever the final figure will be, a sizeable chunk of dough is to be spent executing a proper feasibility study on a Melbourne Airport Rail Link.

The study will look a number of aspects, most notably what form a high-capacity rail link would take (its corridor, its technology, its transit time etc) and how building and operating it will be funded (via a PPP, government debt, the Federal Government's new National Rail building fund).  This funding aspect seems to be key, not least because the Victorian State Government to date has been reluctant to commit to any airport link project, except during this year's budget time.

Firstly, let's look back at what's already been studied.

In 2013 the <a href="https://static.ptv.vic.gov.au/siteassets/PTV/PTV%20docs/Feasibility-Studies/Melbourne-Airport-Rail-Link-Study-Overview-brochure.pdf">Melbourne Airport Rail Link (MARL) Study</a> was completed.  Its findings primarily focus on corridors - working on the assumption a MARL would be an extension of the existing network (or utilise network-compatible rail equipment).

Here are the corridors that were looked at in the study.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/melair_corridors.png" rel="gallery-all" title="MARL Study (2013) - corridors"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="650" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/melair_corridors.png?itok=l2jbrN3a" title="MARL Study (2013) - corridors" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>MARL Study (2013) - corridors</figcaption></figure>And here's the assessment of each corridor.

<figure><a class="colorbox colorbox-insert-image" href="https://res.cloudinary.com/dz9xllyip/image/fetch/q_auto:good/https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/www.urban.com.au/s3fs-public/pictures/article-images/melair_corridors_assessment.png" rel="gallery-all" title="MARL Study (2013) - corridor assessment"><img alt="" class="image-article-full-width-580px" height="303" src="/sites/urban.melbourne/files/styles/article_full_width_580px/public/pictures/article-images/melair_corridors_assessment.png?itok=YgV11hLG" title="MARL Study (2013) - corridor assessment" width="580"></a>

<figcaption>MARL Study (2013) - corridor assessment</figcaption></figure>The conclusion from this study is that the Albion East corridor best meets the various criteria each corridor was assessed against.  It is a very safe assumption to make that should a standard heavy-rail / existing rail network compatible solution be chosen, the Albion East corridor will remain top dog.

On Wednesday 31st of May, RMIT's Centre for Urban Research held the latest in its series of Talking Transport seminars which focused on the Melbourne Airport Rail Link.  One of the panellists was John Hearsch from the Rail Futures Institute and he spoke about <a href="http://www.railfutures.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/170409-Airport-brochure-v6.pdf">RFI's proposal</a>. 

RFI's Airtrain proposal &amp; documentation is a subset of its larger InterCity study which aims to completely separate all regional and metropolitan rail traffic over the longer term and while at the conceptual level, it's no doubt going to be a reference point for the new study.

At the seminar John Hearsch also provided greater context for the RFI proposal in that it would likely be a 3 phase implementation, done under a public-private partnership with the first phase being the most capital intensive: building the three tunnels, airport train shuttle maintenance and storage facility over a 4 year planning and 4 year build timeframe.

The transit time of 15 minutes would be made possible through the combination of tunnels and at-grade sections having a track speed (and operational service) in the same realm as the regional lines outside Melbourne: 160kph.

It takes inspiration from the 2013 MARL Study and John Hearsch made particular mention of the connectivity benefits in that from either Melbourne Airport, Sunshine or Southern Cross stations, the RFI proposal railway would be a 1 train change from any rail destination in Victoria.

The other public-domain proposal that the new feasibility study should look at is the <a href="http://www.airshuttleaust.com.au/">Airshuttle Australia express train project</a>.  This is a proposal to use different rail technology on more direct corridors - in the Citylink median or a combination of above the existing Craigieburn rail corridor and the Tullamarine Freeway median north of Essendon.

As it is technology independent and wouldn't directly interface with the existing network, the Metro Tunnel dependency that has been used as an excuse to not talk about the Airport link in any great detail by the State Government - up until this year's budget - is irrelevant.  In fact, both public domain concepts propose operationally separate railways with no dependency on the existing network; in both cases thne real sticking point is narrowing down the costs, potential benefits and how to fund them.

Of course, we shouldn't discount another well-rounded solution to the long-term needs of passengers at the airport and the employees who work within the vicinity of it to come out of this process either.

<h2>The road public transport network should also be a study priority</h2>

As PTUA's president Tony Morton mentioned at the Talking Transport seminar, the rail link should be ambitious and aim to do most of the heavy lifting; it should aspire to carry a high proportion of trips to and from the airport but we musn't also exclude other modes of public transport.

More than one panellist made mention of the 903 Smartbus that connects the airport with the Craigieburn line and going forward this is likely to remain the primary public transport connection for those who live in this area. But what other opportunities are there for a large airport-focused high-frequency bus network to the east of the airport?

Should money be invested in expanding 24-hour bus lanes &amp; bus priority on Broadmeadows Road, Mahoneys Road, Pascoe Vale and Cooper Street? How much would it cost to operate a 15-minute frequency service from places like South Morang, cross-town, through outer north to Broadmeadows and onto the airport? What would patronage be like?

And a shout out for the tram network, the #59 tram terminates at Airport West, just short of the southern airport employment precinct and terminals.  How much would it cost to extend this tram route out to the airport to compliment the bus network to the airport's east and the heavy lifting rail line?

Servicing the areas directly to the east and south-east of the airport should be within the scope of the new study.

<h2>Strategic land-use context</h2>

<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZBdK2sX3DFo" width="100%"></iframe>

It's also worth reminding ourselves that there is a significant body of strategic planning work underway in the region, most notably the <a href="https://vpa.vic.gov.au/project/sunshine-employment-cluster/">Sunshine National Employment and Innovation Cluster</a> shown in the video above.  

'All rails lead to Sunshine' when it comes to the metropolitan and regional network in this part of Melbourne - the Ballarat Line has budgeted work coming online soon where the line will be duplicated to Melton in preparation for electrification and the Sunbury line is directly benefiting from the Metro Tunnel project.

It's a combination of this already budgeted for or investment that's underway, minimal property acquisition/re-use of existing surplus land in existing rail corridors, coupled with the Victorian Planning Authority's planning work that makes Sunshine such a potent inclusion to a rail link to the airport.

In short, the promised cash should not be limited to just studying how to get an airport rail link up and running sooner, it should be a holistic airport ground transport plan for the next 50 years.
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Setting the scope for the upcoming $30 million Melbourne Airport Rail Link study

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On Wednesday next week, <a href="http://cur.org.au/">RMIT's Centre for Urban Research</a> is holding its third monthly Talking Transport event: The Melbourne Airport Rail Link, are we there yet?

It is a free, <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/the-melbourne-airport-rail-link-are-we-there-yet-tickets-34843527930">ticketed event</a>, to be held at RMIT's Building 80 - located at 445 Swanston Street - level 11, room 10 from 6:00 pm.

<blockquote>
<h3>Description</h3>

Recently, the Australian Government pledged $30 million in addition to the Victorian Government's $10 million for the development of a business case for a rail link between Melbourne's Tullamarine Airport and city, much to the delight of many Victorians.

A train between the airport and city may seem like a no-brainer for Melbourne, but are there details that may derail our expectations?

Join us for the third instalment of RMIT Centre for Urban Research’s Talking Transport series where we bring together leading experts from government, academia, industry and the community sector, to explore and identify real solutions for our city’s future mobility.

The panelists will be seeking to address:

<ul>
<li>Should the link be privately or publicly owned?</li>
	<li>How will that affect ticket pricing?</li>
	<li>What route should the link take?</li>
	<li>Should it be part of the Melbourne Metro?</li>
	<li>Should it be built before or after the Metro?</li>
	<li>What mistakes have other cities similar to Melbourne made and how can we avoid it?</li>
	<li>Should the airport rail should be our #1 priority or are there other public transport projects or issues more deserving of immediate attention?</li>
</ul>
Speakers:

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.ptua.org.au/team/tonymorton/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Anthony Morton</a>, President PTUA</li>
	<li>
<a href="http://www.impa.org.au/peoplek/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Marianne Richards</a>, Vice-President Inner Melbourne Planning Alliance</li>
	<li>
<a href="http://www.railfutures.org.au/about-rail-futures/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">John Hearsch</a>, President, Rail Futures Institute</li>
	<li>
<a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/edward-smelt-327b3242/?ppe=1" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Edward Smelt</a>, Principal Engineer Infrastructure Victoria</li>
</ul>
* More speakers to be announced

Moderator:

<ul>
<li>
<a href="http://cur.org.au/people/professor-michael-buxton/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Michael Buxton</a>, Professor of Environment and Planning RMIT University</li>
</ul>
Date/Time:

Wednesday 31st May, 6:00pm-7:15pm.
</blockquote>

To book a free seat, please see this link on <a href="https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/the-melbourne-airport-rail-link-are-we-there-yet-tickets-34843527930">Eventbrite</a>.

The Centre for Urban Research also streams its events on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RMITCUR/">Facebook live</a>. Shown below are the first two seminars.

April 26th:

<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FRMITCUR%2Fvideos%2F1259704960794910%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe>

March 22nd:

<iframe allowfullscreen="true" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="350" scrolling="no" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FRMITCUR%2Fvideos%2F1221957964569610%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=560" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" width="100%"></iframe>
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Event: The Melbourne Airport Rail Link, are we there yet?

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On Sunday, the Minister for Public Transport and the Premier were in Warrigal to announce the Victorian Government's regional rail revival program. Soon after, the Victorian Government announced their intention to spend $10 million on figuring out how to deliver the Melbourne Airport rail link sooner than the timeframe specified in infrastructure Victoria's 30-year strategy.

This $10 million comes with strings attached, however: it - along with the Regional Rail Revival program - will be financed out of the money that Victoria is entitled to under the Federal Government's asset recycling scheme.

This announcement marks a distinctive shift in Victorian Government rhetoric when it comes to the Melbourne Airport rail link. To date, the Victorian Government has frequently attempted to shift the focus to its current portfolio of infrastructure projects and likewise, they have repeatedly said that the Melbourne Metro project must be built before the Melbourne Airport rail link.

Various news reports have circulated widely in the past of proposals by private organisations to link the airport and city via monorail or other rail-based technologies and the Victorian Government's response has often been reported that the project proponents should approach the government through the unsolicited proposals process.

In receiving briefings from the proponents, the Victorian Government appears to have made the judgement that there is a large amount of interest in linking the airport and Melbourne's CBD with the rail-based transit solution via a privately funded solution.

What a privately funded rail solution looks like is hard to picture at present but it could involve utilising a completely different rail technology and corridor or it could also involve a Melbourne Metro-style private-public partnership extension to our current rail network out to the airport.

In any case, dialing everything back to effectively starting from scratch might frustrate some but on the other hand it also provides far more freedom to develop solutions in relieving pressure on the road network in accessing Melbourne Airport.

At a fundamental level this new business case and study round should revisit all previous Melbourne Airport rail link studies and update the data contained within them. This would include projected rail passenger statistics, updated aviation passenger projections, and taking a more forensic look at how land is used around the airport and how many people are, and how many people will be employment in non-aviation related jobs in future.

One of the themes from Infrastructure Victoria's 30-year strategy found that, when modeled, if a rail link is much more than just a 'City to Airport' service, it has the tendency to have positive impacts dispersed over a greater area. In the 30-year strategy's case, having Melbourne Airport Rail Link as a branch of the new high capacity metro line would take cars off the Monash because airport services would run through the city and out to the south-east.

There is a good body of commentary and evidence elsewhere around the world which points to airport rail solutions should try to serve more than two destinations and the fares should be realistic. Jarrett Walker's article on <a href="http://humantransit.org/2016/03/keys-to-great-airport-transit">Keys to Great Airport Transit</a> is an excellent starting point.

<blockquote>
Toronto’s new <a href="https://www.upexpress.com/">high-fare, elite train</a> between downtown and the airport is a <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/toronto/union-pearson-express-ridership-slumps-to-all-time-low/article28634074/">failure in ridership terms</a>, so it’s a good moment to talk about transit to the airport in general.

This <a href="http://www.ryerson.ca/citybuilding/blog/up_express_and_down/?mc_cid=7f336ff24e&amp;mc_eid=9acc982aad">critique by Cherise Burda of Ryerson University, one of the Toronto line’s few regular riders</a>, pretty much sums up why the Toronto Union Pearson Express is doing so poorly: Fares too high (CAD $27.50 one way) for a line that just doesn’t connect the airport to enough places.
<cite>Jarrett Walker, <a href="http://humantransit.org/2016/03/keys-to-great-airport-transit">Keys to Great Airport Transit</a></cite>
</blockquote>

Interestingly, since that article was published (and the linked blog post was published), Toronto has dramatically reduced the Union-Pearson Express fares and <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/transportation/2016/03/17/union-pearson-express-ridership-spikes-after-fare-reduction">patronage has subsequently blossomed</a>.

While we should welcome any action on getting rail into Melbourne Airport (the faster, the better), if we're going down the path where there is a greater private sector role in developing the Melbourne Airport Rail solution, we mustn't ignore the experience other cities have had.
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$10M Melbourne Airport Rail link study: don't ignore lessons from other cities

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In December 2016, Melbourne airport almost nudged 1,000,000 international passengers through its terminals - on top of the 2,100,000 people who flew through the domestic terminals.

The January 25th media release title says it all: "<a href="http://melbourneairport.com.au/news-events/listing/overview/melbourne-airport-passenger-records-smashed-in-2016-2136">Melbourne Airport passenger records smashed in 2016</a>".

In December 2015, 864,477 international passengers used Tullamarine, in December 2016: 953,855 passengers embarked on their journey to or from Australia through our airport, representing 10.2% growth.

Domestic growth was a little more tempered, where 2,188,317 people used the domestic terminals (compared to the December 2015 numbers of 2,142,748) representing 2.1% growth.

Overall, the calendar year saw 34.6 million passengers fly through Melbourne Airport - 4.6% growth compared to the 2015 calendar year.  4.6% growth is <a href="/news/tick-tock-melbourne-airport-records-5-1-fy16-passenger-growth">bang-on the 10 year average growth rate</a> at the airport.  

Tick tock, tick tock.

<h2>Monorail proposal pops up again</h2>

Despite the curious, generalised and overwhelmingly simplistic put-down of old steel-wheel on steel-rail technology in the first 15 seconds of its corporate video, <a href="http://www.airshuttleaust.com.au/">Airshuttle Australia</a> as it is now known, popped up again in October last year with a promise to build a cheap monorail down a freeway median with a ticket price similar to the current skybus.

On the whole we should encourage solutions that propose to use a different technology to fulfil a solution to a major problem. Yet, I question whether it should be a sky-high fares, private-sector type solution.

There's a now a decent amount of literature on Toronto's dalliance with dedicated "downtown to Airport" rail which began services with sky-high fares only to have them more-than-halved soon after launch.  4-5 months after fares were chopped in half, ridership had tripled according to <a href="http://torontoist.com/2016/10/ridership-is-up-on-torontos-airport-rail-link/">Torontoist</a>.  

I recommend reading Human Transit's "<a href="http://humantransit.org/2016/03/keys-to-great-airport-transit">Keys to Great Airport Transit</a>"; discerning readers will note this one major warning: don't limit the airport rail service to just make it serve one destination, having more is better.  

Consider this: Toronto Pearson saw 40 million passengers in 2016, Melbourne Tullamarine saw 34.6 million.  Toronto Pearson is - measured by rail distance 23 km from the centre of the city, Melbourne Tullamarine would be a similar distance via Sunshine &amp; Albion.  The Union-Pearson Express has two intermediate stops, an airport rail line to Tullamarine would likely stop at Footscray and Sunshine (including Metro tunnel stations).

In fact the only dramatic difference between Toronto and Melbourne airport is that Toronto sees a much higher amount of aircraft movements (~440k versus ~250k), best explained owing to the nature of North American aviation: short and medium distance city pairs are generally served by regional jets (~50-100 passengers) on high frequencies; the bulk of Melbourne's aircraft movements are undertaken in Boeing 737/Airbus 320 or larger sized aircraft (~150-180+ passengers).

It's not uncommon to hear/read people use the early experience of Sydney and Brisbane when discussing (or debating) Melbourne's possible solution for better public transport to the airport. 

Sydney, if you go by Human Transit's guidance, got it right on making trains go "somewhere else" other than the city and airport (trains head all the way out to the south western suburbs) but got it wrong on fares.  <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/train-passengers-to-sydney-airport-line-governments-coffers-to-tune-of-100m-20160301-gn7c3y">Calls are still to this day being made</a> to eliminate the high access fee which bumps up the Sydney airport rail fares.

The lessons of Toronto are possibly the most relevant to Melbourne and here's hoping the state government take heed of them when assessing an unsolicited proposal, should one actually end up on Spring Street.
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