But Pearson said that cost was unlikely to be calculated and disclosed until after the 2026 election,even though Labor had put the price tag for the entire 90-kilometre rail line at $50 billion when it was announced before the 2018 election campaign.
RMIT Emeritus Professor David Hayward said it was “nonsense” to estimate the cost of the second stage of the SRL at this point because the northern leg was decades away.
The Parliamentary Budget Office estimates stage one of the Suburban Rail Loop will cost between $30 billion and $34.5 billion.Credit:Jason South
“It’s so far into the future that it would be ridiculous to even do an estimated cost of it. Things change so dramatically,” Hayward said. “By then we may be flying mini airplanes instead of cars.”
The PBO put the total cost of running the first two stages at $216.7 billion by 2084,if 50 years of operating costs were considered.
“[Premier] Jacinta Allan and her government are putting all of our eggs in one basket,seeking over $216 billion,” said Opposition Leader John Pesutto,who requested the PBO costing.
“It will cost a bomb,and it will come at the expense of urgent projects right across our state. We’re calling on Jacinta Allan and her Labor government to press the pause button on this project. We can’t afford it.”
Hayward said tallying operational costs for 50 years was misleading,particularly without discounting inflation.
He said doing so would be like taking the $3.3 million in annual state government funding for the Parliamentary Budget Office and claiming the office cost taxpayers $450 million over 50 years.
Pearson said no government would factor in running costs into the 2080s.
“It’s like being asked,‘What’s the cost of a house?’,and you have to include 50 years of bills,three major renos and a lifetime of expenditure at Bunnings. It’s just laughable.”
Labor put the total price tag of $50 billion on the SRL when its flagship project was announced during the 2018 election campaign after a secretive planning process that has been criticised by theVictorian Ombudsman,the state’sauditor-general and theGrattan Institute.
While the opposition has vowed topause,or dump the project if necessary,Labor has taken it to two thumping election victories and picked up seats in the first electorates set to benefit.
Southwick said the investment meant Melbourne’s outer west and northern suburbs would suffer along with the state’s regions.
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The opposition initially requested the cost analysisduring the 2022 election campaign but the PBO updated the numbers at Pesutto’s request.
The government has committed $11.8 billion,or one-third of the projected cost for SRL East and wants the federal government to stump up an equal share.
The Commonwealth has so far only pledged $2.2 billion and Pearson refused to deal in “hypotheticals” if extra funding was not allocated in the May federal budget.
The first major works contract,locking Victoria into the eastern leg,was signed in December for$3.6 billion for tunnelling.