South Australia will receive less than one per cent of the $16 billion allocated for rail projects across the nation in this week’s federal budget.
The budget papers published this week show that just $42.3 million in federal rail funding is allocated to South Australia over the next four years – by far the least amount of any Australian state.
Federal rail funding by state and territory. Table: federal budget papers
The funding is only 0.26 per cent of what the federal government has budgeted for rail projects across Australia.
It is also more than three times lower than Tasmania ($154.8 million) and six times lower than the ACT ($269.9 million), despite South Australia having a population three times higher than both those jurisdictions.
By contrast, South Australia will receive $5.34 billion in federal money for road projects – roughly 13 per cent of the national roads funding pool.
The bulk of that money will go towards the final stage of the $15.4 billion North-South Corridor, which the federal government has agreed to fund 50/50 until its completion in 2031.
Federal road funding across the states and territories. Source: federal budget papers
University of South Australia senior lecturer Dr Andrew Allan said the lack of federal funding for South Australian rail projects reflected the state government’s transport priorities.
“Right now, much of the Commonwealth funding to South Australia for transport related activities is going into the north-south motorway, which reflects the state government’s transport focus at the moment,” Allan said.
“With the state government, if they do not have any current projects on the books for investments in commuter rail and light rail, it makes it more difficult for the state government to ask the Commonwealth for funding support.”
An artist impression of the North-South Corridor. Image: State Government
A spokesperson for the federal Department of Infrastructure and Transport said South Australia is receiving $5 million for an Adelaide and regional rail network extensions planning project.
“This will deliver planning studies for outer metropolitan and regional passenger rail service extensions, including development of new corridors and reactivation of closed corridors,” they said.
The Malinauskas Government has so far not committed to any rail network extensions beyond a 1km spur line to Port Adelaide running off the Outer Harbor train line. The project, which is currently under construction, will cost the state government $56.4 million.
Infrastructure and Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis has indicated, however, that he supports the concept of extending the rail network to the Riverlea housing estate in Adelaide’s northwest – but only once there is a sufficient population to justify it. A 12-month study examining transport options for the northern suburbs is currently underway.
Infrastructure SA, the state government’s independent infrastructure agency, is also developing South Australia’s next 20-Year State Infrastructure Strategy. The agency has already faced numerous calls to include greater rail investment in the new strategy.
InDaily contacted Koutsantonis’ office for comment on the federal budget expenditure, with a spokesperson saying: “It is important that proper planning work is done to inform budget bids to the Commonwealth.”
“The state government is currently undertaking several planning studies into future infrastructure solutions across Adelaide and the broader state. These include the Adelaide Hills and Mount Barker and Northern Adelaide Transport Studies.
“The Northern Adelaide Transport Study is considering potential opportunities to improve connectivity to, from, and within this region, including whether future mass transit links may support future population growth, improved connectivity and the state’s decarbonisation efforts.
“It includes many of Adelaide’s key growth areas, including Concordia, Dry Creek and Riverlea.
“All options are on the table, including rail.”
The spokesperson also said the state government agreed last week to co-fund a business case for the Eyre Peninsula export grain supply chain which will be completed this year and “provide clear advice to the Australian Government on regional infrastructure priorities”.
The federal budget also allocates $1 million towards planning the decarbonisation of Adelaide’s metropolitan rail fleet, the federal department spokesperson said.
“These planning projects will provide an opportunity to identify and prioritise future rail investment in South Australia, for consideration in future budgets,” they said.
The state government wants to decarbonise Adelaide’s passenger rail network, with three metropolitan rail lines – Belair, Outer Harbor and Grange – still operating diesel trains that are nearing the end of their service life.
The state Transport Department appointed a global transport consultancy last year to investigate options, including battery-electric and hydrogen fuel cell powered trains, to operate on Adelaide’s remaining unelectrified lines.
An Adelaide Metro diesel railcar arrives at Port Adelaide station. Photo: Thomas Kelsall/InDaily
“Full electrification of Adelaide’s commuter rail network should be a priority,” Allan said.
“And one would think that this would be a funding priority at state and federal governments, but it doesn’t appear to be at the current point in time.
“It could be that the state government is happy with the existing network and doesn’t see the need for new lines or capacity enhancement.”
Between 2018 and 2022, the state and federal governments jointly invested $842 million to electrify the Gawler line in a project which suffered numerous cost blowouts and delays.
The federal Department spokesperson highlighted that the Commonwealth put $280 million towards the Gawler line electrification as well as $252 million to upgrade the freight rail line between Adelaide and Tarcoola.
SA Freight Council chief executive Jonathan Wilson said that an upgrade of the Australian Rail Track Corporation line between Tarcoola and Kalgoorlie was not included in the budget’s rail investment statistics.
“We’ve obviously got a lot smaller network (compared to other states), certainly in terms of passenger rail,” he said.
“I think from a rail point of view we’ve actually done relatively okay, especially since most of our concerns from a freight rail point of view is that resilience going from east to west.”
Wilson said there was also other maintenance work to South Australia’s freight rail that did not appear in the rail investment table.
The lack of investment in South Australian passenger rail in this budget comes as the federal government allocates billions for other rail projects interstate.
Tuesday’s federal budget included $1.2 billion for a rail link between the Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, $1.4 billion for Western Australia’s rail network extension authority, $78.8 million for a business case to investigate high speed rail between Sydney and Newcastle, and $50 million to plan stage 2B of Canberra light rail.
That’s on top of an existing $2.2 billion rail funding commitment for Victoria’s troubled Suburban Rail Loop.
Infrastructure Australia, the federal government’s independent assessment agency for significant projects, has listed “Adelaide public transport capacity and access” on its infrastructure priority list since February 2016.
In its “problem” description, the agency says the cost of delays on Adelaide’s urban transport network would blow out to $2.6 billion by 2031 without further investments.
It also said Adelaide’s employment growth was centred on the inner and middle suburbs but population growth was strongest in the middle and outer suburbs.
“Existing public transport services do not support urban density,” the project description page states.
“A continuation of existing land use patterns will result in greater reliance on and use of private passenger vehicles, in turn leading to further road congestion and delays at the expense of economic efficiency.”
The proposal for Adelaide public transport improvements remains an “early stage proposal” on the priority list.
Greens MLC Robert Simms, who chaired a parliamentary inquiry in 2022 into public and active transport, said it was “profoundly disappointing to see this consistent underinvestment in rail”.
“Rail would deliver clear economic benefits for our state and clear environmental outcomes, slashing emissions,” he said.
“The Greens have been advocating for rail to Mount Barker as a priority but also the Barossa and the mid north.
