Council welcomes commitment to Murray Basin Rail project

Published on 08 April 2016

Mildura Rural City Council has welcomed today’s commitment from the Federal Government for an infrastructure package of $220 million towards the Murray Basin Rail Project.

Mayor Glenn Milne said the funding exceeded expectations and completion of the project will help better connect our primary producers to major ports and strengthen the long term potential for the Mallee to grow exports.

Mayor Glenn Milne acknowledged the persistent work of Member for Mallee Andrew Board. He believes the Member for Mallee’s work with the Federal Government has been invaluable in working towards this end goal.

“This is a great outcome for the region. Getting this final tick in the box for the rail upgrade is so important. We sincerely thank Andrew Broad and the Federal Government for this fantastic commitment,” Cr Milne said.

“I would also like to acknowledge the work of the Murray River Group of Councils, the Rail Freight Alliance, the Grain Corp and Mildura Development Corporation, who have worked together to present a unified, strong business case for this project.

They have succeeded in making this a priority for the State and the Federal Government,” said Cr Milne.

The Murray Basin Rail Project will see lines from Geelong to Mildura, Manangatang, Sea Lake and Murrayville will be standardised, and the existing unused standard gauge connection between Maryborough and Ararat will be reopened.

Infrastructure and Transport Portfolio Councillor Greg Brown was pleased with today’s announcement of further funding and highlighted that the project had ensured that the Murrayville rail way line would remain open.

“It’s fantastic that the work that I’ve seen and been involved on for this project with both the community and various industry sectors has paid off. It’s the icing on the cake to now know that we’ll have Stages 3 and 4, the whole project complete,” said Cr Brown.

He said the Murray Basin Rail Project would also benefit all road users and believed that the project was not just good for Mildura Rural City Council but for all the LGAs and communities along the line.

“These upgrades will reduce the number of heavy vehicles using highways and major transport routes, making roads safer for all travellers and reducing the stress on our already aging road system” Cr Brown said.


Media enquiries

Rebecca Wells
(03) 5018 8195
rebecca.wells@mildura.vic.gov.au 
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