After decades of procrastination and delays, the TGV is beginning to gain momentum in Anglo-Saxon countries. The latest market: the AustraliaThe first high-speed line (LGV) could be built on the east coast of the island, between Sydney and Newcastlea coastal town further north. To achieve this, the federal government will be committing A$660 million (€396 million) to an initial two-year study phase, with the hope of starting work in 2028.
While the 160-kilometre distance between New South Wales' two largest cities may not seem like much compared with our European high-speed lines, the project will reduce the journey time to 1 hour, compared with 2.5 hours at present. Above all, this service should be just the first building block in the construction of an 1800 km network serving the major cities in the east of the country, from Brisbane to Melbourne via Sydney and Canberra, the capital.
Committed French groups
The route of the line between Sydney and Newcastle is complex, with part of it to be made up of numerous tunnels in which trains will travel at 200 km/h compared with 320 km/h outdoors. " We are working on how to build this line in complex areas and on the technical challenges we will have to face. "said Tim Parker, Chief Executive of the High Speed Rail Authority created in 2023 to support the project. He added that " journeys must be fast, convenient and comfortable ".
A number of French companies, from Transdev to Ratp Dev, from Alstom to Systra and including Vinci and Bouygues, are working alongside HSRA, drawing on their experience in both rail construction and operation. The French groups have been following this project since the early 2000s, when it was a veritable sea serpent. Guillaume Pépy, then Chairman of the SNCF, even acted as a sales representative in 2012. It is now hoped that the first contracts will be signed in 2027, with construction finally starting a year later.
A potential 35 million passengers a year
Traffic forecasts are particularly optimistic, with a potential of 35 million passengers a year, compared with 5 million today between Sydney and Newcastle. For the project as a whole, from Brisbane to Melbourne, the Australian authorities' objective is to reduce train journey times, boost trade and the economies of the cities served, not forgetting to encourage people to prefer the TGV to air travel for reasons of ecological transition and reducing the country's carbon emissions.
"This is an investment that will shape the country to support a growing population, underpin the economy while providing a sustainable, low-emission means of transport. "This is what Catherine King, the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, said. Brisbane is all the more favourable to the project as it has been declared the preferred host city by the IOC for the 2032 Olympic Games. Other high-speed rail projects are in the pipeline in Australia. The State of Victoria is studying the feasibility of a line linking its two main cities, Melbourne and Geelong, via Tullamarine international airport. These states are all the more committed to these rail projects given that two-thirds of Australia's population live between Sydney, Melbourne and south-east Queensland. To be continued...
