It will be a long time before major upgrades come to the Ballarat train line, unless there's a big election surprise, but the proposed Commonwealth Games announcement could accelerate things.
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Revelations earlier this week that the promised fast rail to Geelong will not be as fast as expected provoked concern from some in Ballarat, who noted that travel times on our line are slower than they were before the upgrade as more stations are added.
The Western Rail Plan, a multi-million dollar study of how to address managing booming populations to Melbourne's west while supporting regional rail, is still under way, but there's no word yet on when key pillars like electrification to Melton will go ahead.
Electrification and quadruplication will bring Melton, and all the stations between it and Sunshine, into the metropolitan system, and quadruplication would let Ballarat trains bypass them - key infrastructure from recent level crossing removals like bridges will allow space for this.
But that's not all - the announcement this week of a regional Victorian Commonwealth Games has raised hopes and questions, as Ballarat will need significant infrastructure funding to make sure it all runs smoothly if we do get the track and field events, or any others.
WHAT DO YOU THINK? HAVE YOUR SAY BELOW
A new train station on the Maryborough line near Mars Stadium is a good starting point - it will use existing infrastructure, which the premier has said is a priority; it will serve a growing community to the city's north after the games; and it can be done relatively quickly and cheaply, experts say.
City of Ballarat mayor Daniel Moloney has long called for more stations to keep up with Ballarat's growth, including at activity centres like Mars Stadium.
"It's long been our aspiration to have multiple train stations just like Geelong and Bendigo, each have seven, eight stations, Ballarat just has the two," he said.
"The Commonwealth Games need to leave behind a legacy just as the Olympics did in '56 for the city, and we'll need to work with the state government in coming months about what each of the venues will need to do to become games ready, and hopefully secure some permanent infrastructure that will have benefits for multiple generations, but with the stations, that's ultimately our long term aspiration for the precinct."
The independent Rail Futures Institute is also supportive - president John Hearsch said there are a lot more issues that will need to be addressed to truly unlock regional rail, but in the short term, a Mars Stadium station makes sense.
"The government needs to, as a matter of policy, have as many people travelling by rail from Melbourne to the regional venues as is possible," he said.
"I think Mars Stadium should have a station built, assuming it's going to be a well-used facility, and assuming the planning for the area is such that it will be used regularly after that, and it's not a big job to do provided they don't go overboard - you'd need a fairly minimal facility (like two platforms and a carpark), and you'd probably have to put in a loop and some extra signalling, but it's not going to cost hundreds and hundreds of millions to do it."
Given the plan for the games involves events in multiple cities, Mr Hearsch said a revival of passenger rail between Ballarat and Geelong should also be taken seriously.
"90 per cent of the infrastructure's already there, and it's consistent with what the premier's saying about maximising use of existing infrastructure," he said.
IN THE NEWS
Committee for Ballarat chief executive Michael Poulton said more investment must be directed at rail lines, which will benefit regional communities in the long term.
"We can not still be having this conversation in 10 years time and look back and say we missed an opportunity," he said.
"If we don't re-think our strategy and investment, in 10 years time the Westgate Tunnel will be a car park every afternoon and evening and the Deer Park Bypass will need six lanes in each direction.
"Now that we have improved amenities at many of our stations and upgrades to regional lines, the next development must be to decrease travel times by increasing the speed of trains- commuters will flock to a service that is a 40-45 minute service from Melbourne to Ballarat."
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