The Suburban Rail Loop is a Victorian State Government Big Build project, managed by the Suburban Rail Loop Authority (SRLA). 90 kms long, it will connect every major train line from the Frankston line to the Werribee line, via Melbourne Airport, by 2056.
The first 26 kilometre stage to be built from 2022 to 2035 is SRL East and will connect health, education, retail and employment precincts in Melbourne’s south east between Cheltenham and Box Hill.
Conservatively, this Stage One East will cost an eye-watering $34 Billion. The other two stages are scheduled to be completed by 2056.
This huge project is NOT a priority project for Infrastructure Australia or Infrastructure Victoria. At the very best, the benefit-cost ratio for this project is 1.1 to 1.7, not factoring in potential cost blowouts.
ENVIRONMENT EFFECTS STATEMENT (EES) The Suburban Rail Loop Authority EES will be exhibited online for PUBLIC REVIEW and SUBMISSIONS from 5 November - 16 December 2021 with the findings to be examined by an independent inquiry.
The EES and the report from this independent inquiry will inform the Minister for Planning’s assessment of the project.
WRARA will be writing a submission based on the EES report, but you are highly encouraged to ALSO write your own submission.
The more submissions received, the more important the issues will be perceived.
The Suburban Rail Loop will be the largest project Victoria has ever seen, with no proper accountability mechanism and no oversight mechanism of State Parliament. Louise Staley MP
In reference to the recently passed Suburban Rail Loop Bill 2021, Whitehorse Mayor Andrew Munroe says, “There is the potential for the SRLA (Suburban Rail Loop Authority) to take over planning control from Council for approximately a quarter of the Whitehorse municipality.” There is “… a lack of clarity regarding the extent of developments/precincts to be managed by SRLA and how these will be determined.
In particular the proposed declaration of planning areas could be anywhere up to 1.6km from each proposed station using no logical boundaries.
It is fundamentally flawed to have an authority able to declare what it thinks is the area it wants to have control over and then become the planning authority for that.
We have checks and balances for a reason and this Bill is deliberately overriding that.”
TWIN UNDERGROUND TUNNEL ALIGNMENT
If you are a resident or ratepayer or work anywhere between Cheltenham and Box Hill you may be directly affected by the boring and subsequent operation of the 26 kms of underground twin rail tunnels or the compulsory acquisition of properties near the six new stations. Residents and ratepayers in 34 streets in Whitehorse will be directly affected by twin rail tunnels running under their property. The Burwood to Box Hill twin tunnels will be up to 60 metres deep, deeper than between most stations along SRL East. So far the feedback we have been receiving is that very few people in Whitehorse know whether the SRL impacts them directly or not. Check out the INTERACTIVE MAP of the SRL Stage 1 route at https://aus.consultationspace.com/srl-interactive-map/ to see how the Suburban Rail Loop placement will affect you.
Michelle Mayur is on the SRL Precinct Reference Groups for both the new Burwood and Box Hill Stations.
These Precinct Reference Groups provide forums for local community and stakeholder engagement during the planning and development phase of the 1.6 km radius around each station, and later during construction of the SRL.
Michelle can be contacted by email [email protected] and welcomes your comments.