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Category: Rail Transport / Urban Development and Planning / State Parliament

WA Treasurer confirms Morley line 'years away'

Wednesday, 17 Aug 2016 17:13:34 | Andrew O'Connor

The Transport Minister is keen to advance the proposed Morley rail line. (Supplied: WA Government)

Research to assess the route and cost of a proposed heavy rail link to the eastern Perth suburb of Morley will take "years" to complete, the WA Treasurer has told State Parliament.

An underground rail link from the Perth CBD to Morley was identified as a priority project in the Barnett Government's long-awaited transport plan released last month.

But there has been open disagreement between senior Cabinet members over which of the projects identified in the report should be commissioned first.

Transport Minister Dean Nalder has said the Morley rail link should be the Government's top priority, and wants planning underway by the end of the year.

Treasure Mike Nahan believes the Government would get more value for money building a link from Thornlie to Cockburn, connecting with the Mandurah Line.

Dr Nahan and Dr Nalder faced Opposition questions in Parliament today over whether the Morley line was the Government's priority and what it would cost.

Dr Nahan said that would not be clear until preliminary planning and costing work had been completed.

"It will take a number of years to really cost it and go to bids," he told Parliament.

"We are going to plan, in the long term to build a line from Perth to Morley. We're identifying the route, the costs and what-not."

Treasurer pushes Thornlie link

But Dr Nahan remained confident his preferred option of the Thornlie-Cockburn link would proceed.

"It's sitting there, ready to go and I am very confident that we, on this side, that we can do more than one thing at a time," he said.

Transport Minister Dean Nalder has been advised the initial planning work for the Morley link could take two years.

He wants that work to begin before the next election.

While there are no costings on the project, Mr Nalder told Parliament the Forrestfield Airport Link had shown that tunnelling could be less expensive than a rail line on the surface.

But until the detailed work was done, he could not estimate the final costs.

"It is very difficult to define that that should be, so I don't want to put a number on it," he said.

"Perth to Morley is a priority for this government. We will do the work. And we will deliver the best solution for people of Perth," he said.

Mr Nalder also outlined progress with the new bus transit service to Ellenbrook, being planned after the Government broke its 2008 pledge build a rail line.

He said when it was completed late next year, it would cut 10 minutes off the commute time to the city.

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