Highlights
Regional population and economic growth depends on fast connections between regional cities.
A national fast passenger rail network eventually connecting all regional cities in the southeast of Australia will boost our national productivity and capacity to compete in international markets. But it is a high cost and high risk undertaking that should be undertaken in stages.
The first stage should build lines linking Sydney to Canberra and Melbourne to Shepparton. Subsequent stages can extend the network to link Melbourne to Sydney, Sydney to Brisbane, and extensions to other regional cities.
