The Victorian Opposition has made a $633 million election promise to purchase a new fleet of V/Locity trains for use around the state, including the North East line.
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Opposition leader Matthew Guy made the announcement on Sunday, saying the 16 new train sets, consisting of 96 carriages, would be capable of speeds of up to 160km/h and be more comfortable for long-haul country travel.
The new trains, to be ordered in June 2019, would not be dependent on planned works from the federal government.
“The Liberal-Nationals have a strategy to decentralise Victoria’s population to ease the squeeze on Melbourne’s growth. A modern regional rail service is a central part of our plan,” Mr Guy said.
Benambra MP Bill Tilley said the current 30-year-old trains were responsible for almost half the cancellations on the Albury line.
“We are about delivering trains, not looking for an excuse to further delay the replacement of these N-Class relics that the Victorian Auditor General has already said are well past their use by date,” he said.
“The Labor government’s latest excuse is the track, well we are getting on with it – we’ll bring new trains to the North East, while continuing to lobby for a better line.”
The announcement came on eve of Public Transport Minister Jacinta Allan’s visit to Benalla on Monday morning.
