Minns’ $6.8 billion election promise for key passenger train line

About $6.8 billion will be funnelled into removing bottlenecks on the passenger train line from Sydney to the South Coast and electrifying it all the way to Bomaderry as part of a re-election pledge by the Minns Labor government.

In the pitch to Illawarra and Shoalhaven voters ahead of the March state election, Labor has vowed to electrify the rail line between Kiama and Bomaderry, which would allow ageing diesel trains to be replaced by new electric double-deckers. It would give passengers a direct service to Central Station in Sydney by removing the need to switch trains at Kiama.

The work would also involve installing extra tracks and passing loops between Wollongong and Kiama, which is mostly single track.

In addition, the two rail tracks between Hurstville and Sutherland in Sydney would be doubled to four, allowing the T4 Illawarra and South Coast lines to be separated in that congested section of the network.

Construction on extending the electrified line and duplicating tracks – if Labor is re-elected – is not expected to be completed until the mid to late 2030s. Detailed planning works would start next year.

The campaign pledge comes two days after the government backflipped on a shake-up to Sydney’s rail timetable following a backlash from train commuters. The new timetable would have led to longer journey times but extra services for passengers travelling on key corridors such as the T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra, and the South Coast lines.

The T4 and South Coast lines together carry about 250,000 passengers a day, or a quarter of Sydney Trains’ patronage.

Premier Chris Minns said South Coast communities needed faster, more frequent and reliable trains, describing his government’s pledge as being the “largest investment in rail infrastructure in generations” for the region.

“For too long, the Liberals only funded Sydney metros, while regional communities missed out,” he said.

Labor’s latest plan for the South Coast involves an immediate $621 million to upgrade critical infrastructure such as signalling and raising sections of track ahead of electrification and duplication work.

The government will also consider within the next two months final business cases for extensions of metro or heavy rail lines in Sydney’s outer west. While the existing metro lines are popular with commuters, Minns has repeatedly said they are expensive projects and have come at the cost of the existing heavy rail passenger network.

“Most people still use the heavy rail network ... [and] that needs some love because at the moment it’s too unreliable,” he said on Friday.

The latest election commitment comes as the government anticipates a fight against One Nation in regions such as the South Coast, where Labor holds all seats from Bega to Wollongong after a 2025 byelection win in Kiama.

Local frustration about unreliable and ageing rail infrastructure was a significant bugbear for locals during the byelection campaign, which resulted in Labor winning the seat with a healthy swing.

During a visit to Eurobodalla in August, Minns said he was concerned about regions like the South Coast where he described the “threat” to Labor posed by people considering voting One Nation for the first time.

And amid a threat from One Nation to Labor seats in the Hunter, the government’s signature $12 billion election commitment involves building a train manufacturing plant on a former mine site at Teralba in Lake Macquarie. Under that plan, the facility would build trains to replace the ageing Tangara fleet used predominantly on the T4 line.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.