This New Flinders Street Station Entrance Might Slightly Improve Your Daily Commute

The morning work run could soon be a whole lot speedier for commuters across the city, as the Victorian Government starts work on both its hefty redevelopment of Flinders Street Station and multi-million dollar upgrades to the City Loop.

To help stamp out congestion issues in the Elizabeth Street subway tunnel, the iconic station will score a new fully accessible entrance, running directly from Southbank's Riverside Walk onto Platform Ten. It's slated to open by April this year, with Acting Premier James Merlino saying that "Flinders Street is the heart of our train system and the heart of our city – we're restoring it and making it more accessible, safe and user friendly for passengers."

Another project the government is forking out the big bucks for is a series of upgrades for the City Loop. It's investing $134 million on the 32-year-old rail circuit, which includes $70 million in much needed improvements to the City Loop's fire safety systems. The planned upgrades will also incorporate a new alarm system with extra CCTV cameras, which will give operators immediate notifications if anyone ventures onto the tracks. With over 111,000 people riding the City Loop each day, this upgrade alone is expected to reduce delays and help boost the network's reliability.

This is in addition to the build of the new Metro Tunnel, which will see nine-kilometre twin tunnels and five underground train stations added to Melbourne's inner city. These new stations will create a new path into the city that doesn't rely on (but connects to) the City Loop. The idea is that it will ease congestion in the City Loop and allow more trains to be getting in and out of the city. Construction on all this is expected to be completed is 2026.