More than fifteen years after it was first floated, the long-awaited Ellenbrook rail line has opened, with the promise of shorter travel times for people in Perth's north-eastern suburbs. Five new train stations have opened between Bayswater and Ellenbrook, but the project has come with a hefty price tag and was years behind schedule.
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00:00It's been a long time coming for the residents of Ellenbrook.
00:07I've been looking forward to this day for quite some time, ever since I heard that they're
00:12building the Ellenbrook line.
00:13It's been years, it's well needed, this place has just boomed in population.
00:17I think it will be a lot easier for a lot of people around Ellenbrook.
00:24The new 21km Ellenbrook line officially up and running.
00:283, 2, 1.
00:30This is truly a great day, this is something that I think I'll remember for the rest of my life
00:36and to the people of the corridor, we delivered it.
00:39The rail extension to the current Bayswater line comes with five new stations,
00:44Morley, Narrandah, Balladura, Whiteman Park and Ellenbrook.
00:48The fair will also be capped, costing just over $4 and will significantly reduce commute times.
00:55People of Ellenbrook who would previously have to drive to the city over one and a half hours
00:59to get to work each day can now commute in around 30 minutes.
01:03The project however has been a political football for more than a decade,
01:07promised under both governments but not delivered until now.
01:11It got a timeline and price tag from Labor in 2017,
01:15done by 2022 and costing just over $860 million.
01:20But the timing and budget blew out, the line now totalling over $1.6 billion.
01:26We delivered this through COVID, we delivered this through international supply chain interruptions.
01:32This whole rail line costs about one station that has been delivered in Sydney.
01:37The opening of the Ellenbrook line is a big win for Labor, delivering on one of its key election promises.
01:42But there's still questions around cost blowouts of the whole Metronet project,
01:46given its history of going over budget.
01:49We made a contribution and we recognise that the supply chain issues that came with COVID,
01:54that long tail in global inflation, has had an impact.
01:58The Ellenbrook line follows the opening of the Yanship line earlier in July this year.
02:03Next on the list for Metronet, the Thornley-Coburn link project,
02:07connecting the Mandurah and Armadale-Thornley lines,
02:10expected to be completed by mid next year.
02:13A momentous day for many.