>>1426701Make this a reality
Procedure:
1. Dual gauge the line from Jacana straigh to Southern Cross instead of the current Albion-Jacana loop craziness
2. Maintain the standard gauge on the Victorian Northeast Line to a higher standard.
3. Start with incremental electrification through to Seymour, replacing DMU service with intercity EMUs
4. Similiarly, electrification for Goulburn and then Canberra.
5. Fund re-alignment works and separate high speed line construction, to allow trains to consistently achieve higher speeds around the maximum of the XPT (180-200 km/h) or even higher.
6. Finally Goulburn-Albury-Seymour electrification and a new higher level of service than the XPT, stopping at fewer stations. The alignment of the high speed line should follow the Hume Hwy much more closely after Yass. It may even bypass Wagga, unless that's too politically unpopular.
The savings in travel time in not going from Melbourne CBD to the Airport (already quite a long trip) and Sydney CBD to the Airport (not as bad with a direct train but still a timewaster) should add up. Get rid of the ridiculous policy of 1 hour ahead of time for checked luggage at Southern Cross. Have staff ready to take luggage and add tags at the baggage car before each service departs, similarly at Sydney Terminal.
Oh and get funding for it by ripping the subsidies out of air travel and re-introducing the carbon tax, which will get loads of money out of the air travel industry and into travel. The other economic benefit will be in making further commuting into Melbourne/Sydney viable or hopefully ultimately a more polycentric Australia where Seymour, Albury, Goulburn and others rise in importance.
Oh and it's not like the stations involved have short platforms or would be hard to extend. I mean, Albury is the longest used platform in the world.
