On Thu, 8 May 2014, Brian May wrote:
On 7 May 2014 22:29, Peter <Petros.Listig@fdrive.com.au> wrote:
The "re-engineered" Metro Rail will not enter the tunnel north of the CBD, instead it is planned to go from South Yarra via Domain to Fishermans Bend and... voila - appear at Southern Cross. From there a new Airport Link will go through Footscray and Sunshine - so will leave Southern Cross the "North Melbourne" way.
Make sure you are well informed before the criticise the MRL.
The media has lost the point, it isn't just a tunnel, it is a complete redesign of how many lines use the city loop, making it more consistent and less confusing in the process (e.g. the 'new' loop pair will be bidirectional and won't change direction at midday every day). As well as a much needed link to the airport. As with any solution, it has it advantages and disadvantages compared with the previous proposed design and the current design.
See: http://www.transport.vic.gov.au/projects/melbourne-rail-link
By their own admission, the train will take longer to get the airport than skybus. And because they'll fuck it up with a PPP, it'll probably cost even more too. It's not *designed* to be in competition with the skybus. The contract with skybus and the airport doesn't allow them to put in a competing system. -- Tim Connors