Metro Area Express (MAX) was a proposed light rail network for

Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, as part of

Colin Barnett Colin James Barnett (born 15 July 1950) is a former Australian politician who was the 29th Premier of Western Australia. He concurrently served as the state's Treasurer at several points during his tenure and had previously held various other p ...

's 2010 announcement of a decade of light rail for Perth. It was scheduled to open in 2018, then postponed until 2022, then replaced by concepts for rapid buses and heavy rail, until it was abandoned in 2016.

Background

Perth's original tramway network, which linked the

Perth central business district Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

with many of Perth's inner suburbs, was in operation between the end of the nineteenth century and 1958. Since the start of 2007, there have been four proposals for the reintroduction of trams to the Perth metropolitan area, in the form of light rail. At least two of the proposals have been the subject of a detailed feasibility study. In September 2012, the

Government of Western Australia The Government of Western Australia, formally referred to as His Majesty's Government of Western Australia, is the States and territories of Australia, Australian state democratic administrative authority of Western Australia. It is also common ...

announced plans for a new Perth network, to be known as ''Metro Area Express'' (MAX). Construction of the first stage was originally scheduled to begin in 2016, and be completed by the end of 2018. However, in December 2013 the government announced the project would be deferred for three years. Under the new timeframe the MAX network was to open in 2022. In April 2014, incoming transport minister

Dean Nalder Dean Cambell Nalder (born 5 February 1966) is an Australian former politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia for the Liberal Party from 2013 to 2021, representing the seat of Alfred Cove until 2017, and Ba ...

stated the government would investigate splitting the project into two parts, to allow an earlier start to be made on construction with priority given to the Balga - CBD section. In March 2015, the government announced it was considering using buses to implement the MAX route rather than light rail. Transport minister Dean Nalder said a preliminary analysis suggested that using buses would cost approximately 50% less than a light rail system. In February 2016 it was proposed by the government that a heavy rail line be built. In June 2016 the government confirmed that the MAX light rail plan had been cancelled. While still planning a northern transport corridor, Transport Minister Dean Nalder said it would not be implemented using light rail and instead would use other alternatives.

Route

The first stage of the MAX network was to run from the

Polytechnic West Polytechnic West (formerly Swan TAFE) was a State Training Provider established under section 35 of the Vocational Education and Training Act 1996 (WA) based in Perth, Western Australia. Polytechnic West is one of the largest training providers ...

campus in

Balga Balga (russian: замок Бальга; german: Burg Balga; lt, Balga; pl, Balga) was a medieval castle of the Teutonic Knights in Kaliningrad Oblast, Russia. The castle ruins are located on the shore of the Vistula Lagoon, north of Mamonovo ...

, in Perth's northern suburbs, to the

Perth CBD Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, with spur lines from the CBD to the

Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre The Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre (QEIIMC), commonly known as just QEII, is a medical campus in Perth, Western Australia, situated in the suburb of Nedlands directly adjacent to Kings Park. It contains Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, the P ...

in Nedlands and to the eastern end of

the Causeway The Causeway is an arterial traffic crossing in Perth, Western Australia, linking the inner-city suburbs of East Perth and Victoria Park. It is carried over the Swan River at the eastern end of Perth Water by two bridges on either side of ...

in Victoria Park.

Stops

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

MAX
– official site
Perth Light Rail
– a coalition lobbying for the introduction of light rail to Perth {{coord missing, Western Australia Light rail in Australia Public transport in Perth, Western Australia Perth Max