Canberra’s long-awaited light rail service is expected to begin operating over Easter with a formal launch on 20 April.
Minister for Transport, Meegan Fitzharris said Canberra Metro had advised her that the light rail system should be operational by that date.
“Timing is still dependent on Canberra Metro meeting all third party rail accreditation requirements from the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator, Utilities Technical Regulator and the Independent Certifier,” Ms Fitzharris said.
“While informing the community of a start date is important, the priority for the ACT Government and Canberra Metro is to maintain a safe worksite and deliver a quality light rail system.”
She said it was clear to everyone that significant progress had been made on the project, which was now in the final stages of testing.
“As with any complex infrastructure project, there are risks that can affect timing such as weather, the testing and commissioning of rail and signalling systems, and third party accreditations,” Ms Fitzharris said.
“For light rail to become operational, it must satisfy a number of additional certification and regulatory processes including various safety sign-offs.”
She said the number one priority was the safety and quality of the system, so there was a need to be flexible if there were issues that pushed the start date back.
“This is a really exciting time for our city, and I look forward to updating the community in coming days about how people can be among the first to ride light rail in Canberra and the events we have planned to launch our city’s biggest ever infrastructure project,” Ms Fitzharris said.
