There were several different models proposed for this including re-routing those Murray/Mallee lines from Maryborough to Ararat and two other possible connections from the Mildura line to points along the Warracknabeal/Hopetoun line. There's no information yet about which route will be chosen, I'm guessing that will be done later this year when the business case is released?

Interesting to see the standard gauge network in Victoria expanding again anyway -

What will become critical is the lack of SG siding and yard space in Melbourne. Time to convert half of Tottenham yard.

Let's hope they appoint a group to study the options and perhaps undertake a project which has more than one route and sets the network up for more freight and better class track and signalling.

Swanston Dock sees QUBE run trip trains of a weekend to Victoria Dock with the Deniliquin rake). It's not as if the Merbein freight (or the Tocumwal or Warrnambool for that matter) has to have its' loading transshipped part way down because there is no BG access, it goes all the way in.

This is true.  Does Qube use West Swanston dock?  Is that what you are referring to?

Still not sure on the need for standardisation myself.

It will be bad news for those people on this board foaming away for years about a new Mildura passenger service - it would be completely un-viable for any passenger service to go Maryborough-Ararat-Geelong.

Access by a variety of operators and rolling-stock is a plus but in this case I think it's got more to do with redirecting rail traffic towards the Port of Portland. For some reason Labor wants more rail freight directed towards Portland - perhaps to delay any need for a new port around Melbourne?

Access by a variety of operators and rolling-stock is a plus but in this case I think it's got more to do with redirecting rail traffic towards the Port of Portland. For some reason Labor wants more rail freight directed towards Portland - perhaps to delay any need for a new port around Melbourne?

It will be bad news for those people on this board foaming away for years about a new Mildura passenger service - it would be completely un-viable for any passenger service to go Maryborough-Ararat-Geelong.

Mineral sands traffic will factor heavily in the business case, as will Graincorp's silo rationalisation plans.

If they're trying to send freight to Portland I can't see it helping their prospects of selling the Port of Melbourne. Portland would more than likely need a big upgrade before they could even think of sending it down there. AFAIK, there's no intermodal facilities there

We should wait for the plan. COuld it be they do decide to SG the Maryborough line and all points north?

LancedDendrite points this out too; there's a lot of obstacles to increasing actual tonnages down there although apparently it's one of the best deep-water ports in Australia. It could have greatly benefited from the (much easier) gauge conversion of the Dartmoor line through to (perhaps) an intermodal point east of Mt Gambier or perhaps to Snuggery. That was a terrible missed opportunity for getting bulk haulage off the road network and expanding the Port of Portland - a stupid lack of cooperation between the states at that time.

It wasn't one of the options being discussed by Labor when they were elected.

It probably is, I can't remember the exact name of it off the top of my head. POTA used to run the MA2/AM2 services out of there, and later the 9719V/7920V Horsham freight.

Here's a shot of one of the trip trains, they run top and tailed with a loco on either end of the train to make it easier to get dack down to the Westgate sidings, in this case it was G512-wagons-G532

West Swanston  I think is the dock farthest the city?

For some reason Labor wants more rail freight directed towards Portland - perhaps to delay any need for a new port around Melbourne?

There is also the benefit of laying the foundations for connecting to the Perth-Sydney line,  near Broken Hill.

It'll be interesting to see if they change the alignment of the line eg bypass the town and whether any sales of the what would be the former alignment, could offset some of the cost.

Bypass which town?

Mildura. The Mildura Rail Bypass was studied around 2006 - deviating westward between Irymple and Red Cliffs and then pulling a dog-leg around to the north meeting up with the line west of Merbein. Would be built alongside a proposed Sturt Highway deviation. It would take rail out of the Mildura town centre, resulting in the removal of 28 level crossings in one hit.

Mildura passenger services were envisioned to terminate at a branch to Mildura Airport. Freight would have to be moved from Merbein to a proposed new large intermodal terminal at Thurla. The report is still floating around on Google somewhere.

It was an idea which would have benefited no one except the Mildura City Council. As it stands today, there are very few rail movements in Mildura compared to 10 years ago.  The business has been severely cut back under PN.

As for the removal of Mildura Yard which the council bitched and moaned about. 10 years later the place looks like a wasteland rather than the yard it once was with Fast Track being busy and oil and cement and other wagons (vans) moving around the yard.

Mildura was killed off by PN and also Victrack.