The next major milestone for Australia’s High Speed Rail was announced this week, with the beginning of the development phase for High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney.

The $659.6 million, two-year development phase will ensure that Line 1 is construction ready. As recommended by Infrastructure Australia, it is the detailed work required to lock in the design, approvals process, scope and cost to ensure major construction contracts can be awarded.

High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney will cut travel times to around one hour from Newcastle to Central Sydney, with travel from the Central Coast to either Sydney or Newcastle reduced to just 30 minutes.

Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government Catherine King said High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney will change the way people live, work and travel in the country’s most populous region, connecting the Newcastle and Central Coast communities to Sydney in a way that has never been done before.

“This development phase will lay the foundations for delivery of High Speed Rail between Newcastle and Sydney, ensuring we secure the rail corridor and undertake detailed planning before we start building,” King said.

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

This disciplined approach to planning and construction sequencing is necessary to deliver a project of this size. As part of the Development Phase a range of potential public and private financing options will also be assessed. This work will inform a future government investment decision once project scope, cost and risk are finalised.

The business case for the project prepared by the High Speed Rail Authority was also released this week.

The business case assesses that the project will boost the Australian economy by $250 billion over the next 50 years and produce more than 99,000 new jobs, supporting sectors such as construction, advanced manufacturing and tourism.

The business case can be accessed here.