Australia, inland route, Melbourne-Brisbane

[David Benton]

https://inlandrail.artc.com.au/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
A big scale project, thats been talked about for years.
Personally , I don't know why they don't start a service on the existing tracks, with road bridging for the 500 or so missing k's.

[george matthews]

I think the failure to build a more direct and shorter route was probably a result of the adoption of the Irish gauge in Victoria.

[David Benton]

The standard gauge link has been in place form the NSW border to Melbourne since the 70's.
Gauge wise , I think the Brisbane end is the biggest problem, with a long stretch of narrow gauge. I haven't read far enough to see if they will convert it to Standard gauge , or build a new standard gauge line. The map gives the impression it will be a new standard gauge line in a more direct alignment.

[george matthews]

I have taken the train from Sydney to Melbourne and returned. I assume that a direct connection between Melbourne and Brisbane could be quicker than going via Sydney. But would there be enough traffic to justify it?

[David Benton]

If it took some of the traffic of road , yes , I think there would be . By all reports, There are huge numbers of trucks on these routes.