Posted: 24 February 2026 | Gabriel Higgins | No comments yet

The federal government has launched a $659.6 million development phase to progress high speed rail, aiming to cut journey times and unlock major economic growth.

The proposed high speed connection would cut travel times from Newcastle to Central Sydney to around one hour.

The Albanese Government has formally launched the next stage of Australia’s High Speed Rail programme, announcing the start of a two year development phase for the Newcastle to Sydney corridor.

High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney will change the way people live, work and travel in our country’s most populous region

Backed by $659.6 million in federal funding, the development phase will prepare Line 1 between Newcastle and Sydney to become construction ready. The work will focus on detailed design, environmental and planning approvals, corridor protection, cost refinement and risk assessment, in line with recommendations from Infrastructure Australia.

The proposed high speed connection would cut travel times from Newcastle to Central Sydney to around one hour. Journeys from the Central Coast to either Sydney or Newcastle are expected to fall to approximately 30 minutes, reshaping commuting patterns across the state’s most populous region.

Under the programme, the High Speed Rail Authority will oversee technical development and delivery planning. The Authority has also released its business case, which projects the scheme could generate $250 billion in economic benefits over 50 years and support more than 99,000 jobs across construction, advanced manufacturing and tourism.

Infrastructure sequencing and financial structuring will form a central part of the development phase. Alongside engineering and approvals work, the government will assess a range of public and private financing models to inform a future investment decision once scope, cost and risk parameters are finalised.

Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, said the project would transform mobility between Newcastle, the Hunter, the Central Coast and Sydney.

High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney will change the way people live, work and travel in our country’s most populous region. It will connect the Newcastle and Central Coast communities to Sydney in a way that has never been done before.”

She added:

Carefully planned, costed and detailed preparation takes time, but it means when construction starts, it is built to last.”

The government maintains that a disciplined, staged development approach is essential to delivering infrastructure at this scale, positioning the project as a long term nation building investment.

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Funding & Finance, High-Speed Rail, Infrastructure Developments, Procurement, Regulation & Legislation, Rolling Stock Orders/Developments, Route Development, Sustainability/Decarbonisation, Timetabling/Scheduling

Albanese Government, High Speed Rail Authority, Infrastructure Australia

Australia

Catherine King