Newcastle high-speed rail alignment still unsettled during two-year development phase

Newy 87.8 FM – The alignment for the Newcastle end of the Sydney–Newcastle high-speed rail line remains unsettled, with the High Speed Rail Authority still working to finalise the route during the project's two-year development phase.

The authority's Industry Update from May 2026 says the Early Contractor Involvement process includes "optimising and finalising the alignment and other critical elements between Newcastle and Sydney" ahead of a government investment decision.

The Newcastle-end works are not yet in any contract package. The only area package tendered, Area Package 1, covers Berowra to Ourimbah with about 35 kilometres of twin tunnels and the Gosford station, with three consortia shortlisted.

Broadmeadow is the Newcastle terminus under the business case. Federal Infrastructure Minister Catherine King told ABC Radio Newcastle that "Broadmeadow is the start point", while noting that "if through the development phase they find it's feasible to do an alternative, then they'll look at that."

HSRA chief executive Tim Parker said preliminary geotechnical work in the Lower Hunter is done, with more geotech "part of the work in the next two years". Parker said trains could run at about 200 km/h in tunnel sections compared with up to 320 km/h on the surface.

The $659.6 million development phase was announced in February 2026, with a final investment decision targeted for 2028 and construction from 2029. King has put the Newcastle–Sydney section at roughly $30–32 billion.

Join the discussion on Facebook.