Melbourne Airport Rail Stage 2 to Keilor East starts within weeks

The line will connect straight into the Metro Tunnel and use the tunnel's high-capacity signalling. That's what lets trains run close together, and it's why the governments keep pairing the words "frequent services" with this project.

The timeline comes in steps. The early works starting now are site investigations, procurement and development. Community engagement and early designs follow next year, and major construction begins in 2028. When it finishes in 2031, the release says, trains will take passengers to Keilor East for the first time.

The governments expect Keilor East station to connect an estimated 5,200 passengers a day to the city. They also say another 6,600 passengers and airport workers are expected to use the new line every hour.

The Melbourne Airport Rail project's official YouTube channel has put up a short video, titled "Stage 2 of Melbourne Airport is ready for take-off," to go with the announcement.

Stage 1 is already under way at Sunshine

Stage 2 doesn't start from scratch. It'll be delivered alongside the $4.1 billion Sunshine Superhub, which is the first stage of Melbourne Airport Rail and is already being built.

That project will turn Sunshine Station into a six-platform hub and untangle six kilometres of track between West Footscray and Albion, creating room for 1,000 trains a day, the release says. It's due to be finished in 2030.

Stage 1 isn't only about the airport. The release says it'll deliver more trains, more often, on the Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo lines, and pave the way for electrifying the Melton line. For regional commuters who come through Sunshine every day, that may matter more in the short term than the airport link itself.

State Member for Laverton Sarah Connolly said "construction on Melbourne Airport Rail is already underway, with works ramping up to untangle six kilometres of track and to rebuild Sunshine Station." That, she said, meant "unlocking capacity for 1,000 trains a day."

New stations are part of the package too. Carroll listed "brand-new stations at Tottenham, Albion and Keilor East," and State Member for Footscray Katie Hall said the governments were "delivering a new and accessible Tottenham Station, giving locals safer connections across the west."

The last stage still needs a plan

Here's the catch. Stage 2 runs toward the airport, but it stops at Keilor East. The final leg into the airport is Stage 3, and the release says the Melbourne Airport Rail Steering Committee "is continuing to work through options" for it. Stage 3 will include an above-ground station at the airport precinct.

The release doesn't give a date for Stage 3.

So this week's news is real progress, not the finish line. There's money committed, a route and a station for Stage 2, a start date for major works, and a year when trains are due to run. What's still missing is the last few kilometres into the airport precinct.

What the leaders said

Albanese framed it as capacity. "We're building Victoria's future, unlocking capacity to run more trains, more often, and ensuring we have a train line to Melbourne Airport," he said.

Carroll is also the state member for Niddrie, an electorate that takes in Keilor East. He said "Melbourne needs a direct rail link to the airport, that's why we're getting on and delivering it." He added that "a new Keilor East Station will give locals direct access to the city via the Metro Tunnel."

Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King called it "important progress that is getting us a step closer to a long-awaited rail connection to Melbourne's airport." Victorian Public Transport Minister Vicki Ward said the investment "takes us closer to a train line to the airport and lays the groundwork for more trains across Melbourne's west."

Maribyrnong MP Jo Briskey focused on the locals. "The heart of this project is people," she said. It was about "connecting workers to jobs," and "people to services," she said, and "every day providing 5,200 members of my community with access to the city through the new Keilor East Station."

Why it matters

Melbourne has talked about an airport train for a very long time. Its main airport still has no rail link, so travellers rely on the SkyBus, taxis, rideshare and the freeway.

That's why staged progress like this matters. Stage 1 at Sunshine is being built, Stage 2 now has a start, and both bring benefits that don't depend on the airport link being finished. There are more regional trains, new stations in the west and a new direct line into the Metro Tunnel from Keilor East.

It's not the only big rail job on Melbourne's northern edge. Further north at Beveridge, Inland Rail's Beveridge to Parkes section is still due by the end of 2027. Stage 2's route alongside the Jacana freight corridor is a reminder that passenger and freight trains in Melbourne's north often have to share the same corridors.

For now, the next step you'll actually see is a small one. Survey crews and site investigation teams will turn up along the Albion to Keilor East route in the coming weeks. If the dates hold, major construction follows in 2028 and the first passengers ride to Keilor East in 2031.