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For years, the concept of a high-speed rail network has been under discussion among governments, but today, Prime Minister Albanese has indicated his willingness to take concrete steps towards better connecting major cities. In a conversation with ABC radio, he shared his vision for such a transformative project.
“While it won’t be operational during my time as prime minister, we’ll be making an announcement in just a few weeks,” Albanese revealed during the interview. He expressed his full support for establishing high-speed rail lines along the east coast, underscoring the potential benefits of such infrastructure.
Albanese articulated his reasoning by stating, “It absolutely makes sense. Our nation is vast, with a small population spread across a large island continent.” He further emphasized Australia’s unique position, noting, “We are the only inhabited continent on Earth that doesn’t yet have high-speed rail.”
“I think that it absolutely makes sense. We have a small population for a relatively big nation, an island continent,” he said.
“We are the only inhabited continent on Earth that doesn’t have high-speed rail.
While there has been some support for a high-speed rail network, some think tanks and experts, including the Grattan Institute, believe such a project is not suitable for Australia.
Albanese used his first term as prime minister to establish the High Speed Rail Authority to plan to build a network connecting Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne, as well as Newcastle and Central Coast regional lines.
An evaluated business case has proposed construction start by 2027 and completion by 2042.
It has proposed the first stage of the project should be the 194km Newcastle to Sydney line, which includes six stations at Newcastle, Lake Macquarie, Central Coast, Sydney Central, Parramatta and Western Sydney International Airport.
According to the business case, the train would reach maximum speeds of up to 320km/h outside tunnelled sections and 200km/h inside the tunnelled sections.
Stages two and three would connect the network with the remaining east coast capital cities and regions.
Now that the business case has been evaluated, the next stage is the actual project delivery. 
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