4 March 2026
The Greens will today announce their plan to return passenger rail to the Adelaide Hills. The party is proposing extending the Belair Line to Mount Barker and purchasing 5 new trains to provide Hills residents with a mass transit service that will connect them to metropolitan Adelaide and ease growing congestion on South Eastern Expressway.
Key facts:
- The Greens’ plan would adapt the infrastructure on the current rail corridor to connect the Belair Line to Mount Barker, with stops at Stirling, Aldgate, Bridgewater, and Balhannah at a cost of approximately $700 million (based on costings from the Mount Barker Mass Transport Study).[1]
- The train will run every 30 minutes during peak times. The journey will take approximately 70 minutes from Mount Barker to Adelaide but could include faster express services.
- The Greens propose that modern rail cars are purchased that have variable gauge convertible bogies, allowing the passenger trains to pass through both standard and broad-gauge tracks, without stopping. The cost to purchase an additional five variable gauge rolling stock is approximately $25 million.
- 56% of people who live in the township of Mount Barker reported that they work outside the region, with the majority of those commuting for work to metropolitan Adelaide. The population of Mount Barker is set to increase from 25,000 residents to 56,700 by 2036.
- Both Labor and the Liberals ruled out passenger rail to the Hills last week on ABC Radio.[2]
Quotes Attributable to Robert Simms MLC
“It's disappointing that during this election campaign we haven't seen any significant public transport announcements from Labor and the Liberals. Labor's land reserve announcement last week, in particular, really was really more spin than substance."
"The Greens have an exciting plan to get rail to Mount Barker on track and link the hills to the city, easing congestion and reducing carbon emissions."
Quotes Attributable to Heysen Candidate Genevieve Dawson-Scott
“If elected to represent the people of Heysen I will fight to make rail to the Hills a priority and hold the Government’s feet to the fire until it’s delivered.”
“The fact that Labor and the Liberals have said no to rail to the Hills is another example of them taking our community for granted.”