The home of Melbourne’s high capacity trains is taking shape, with the first locally sourced steel structures now in place.
The Pakenham East site, which is almost as large as 60 MCGs, will eventually house maintenance facilities for the fleet of new trains, a stabling yard for 30 trains, and a high-tech driver-training simulator.
More than 80 per cent of the earthworks have now been completed at the depot, with over 20 kilometres of rail track to be laid throughout the depot.
The High Capacity Metro Trains Project will create around 1,100 jobs using 60 per cent local content, meaning more work across Melbourne and regional Victoria. The new train depot consists of 87 per cent local content.
Hundreds of workers are already on site building the depot, with that number peaking at 400 next year. A further 100 long-term jobs will be required on the site to maintain the trains.
The Andrews Labor Government’s investment will bring regional benefits with Times Electric Australia to establish a manufacturing plant in Morwell to build the traction and electrical auxiliary power systems for the trains.
This work will create 23 new jobs in Morwell and seven elsewhere in Victoria, including six positions for apprentices or trainees, and three roles for workers from disadvantaged backgrounds.
In Melbourne’s west, SIGMA Air Conditioning will supply heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems for the new trains, creating 18 new jobs and an expansion of their current facilities in Derrimut.
This is in addition to the ongoing work on Victoria’s big public transport projects that is creating more than 1800 jobs in the rolling stock and transport industries.
110 jobs will be created at the East Preston tram workshop to upgrade the facility and refurbish hundreds of trams over the next five years.
In Melbourne’s south east, Ultimate (Australia) Transportation Equipment has been contracted to supply and assemble the passenger seats, hand and grab rails and other interior fittings, securing 21 local jobs.
Mount Waverley supplier Fire Protection Technologies has won a six-year contract to provide fire detection systems for the bigger, better trains – delivering $850,000 in local content.
The bigger, better trains will progressively enter service from mid-2019 on the Cranbourne and Pakenham lines and will eventually run through the Metro Tunnel to Sunbury.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Industry and Employment Ben Carroll
“Our bigger, better, next-generation trains will move more people and create 1,100 jobs across the state.”
“We’re creating local jobs by building more trains to get Victorians home safer and sooner.”
“Our record investment in a better transport system for Victoria is creating thousands of jobs across the state.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020