A new contract to supply concrete segments for the southern section of the Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) in Melbourne is expected to bring 75 new jobs to LS Precast in Benalla – Victoria’s largest precast concrete manufacturing facility.
Premier Jacinta Allan and Minister for Suburban Rail Loop, Housing and Building Harriet Shing made the announcement at the Benalla manufacturer on Friday.
They said more than 96,000 concrete segments will be produced in Benalla to build the 16-kilometre section of twin tunnels that will slash travel times and take thousands of cars off metropolitan roads.
The facility is set to build 170 segments a day, securing jobs for more than 75 local workers and creating even more jobs across the supply chain – with production of the segments set to kick off in October as crews prepare for tunnelling to begin next year.
LS Precast was built in 2018 to support Victoria’s Big Build and it has already supplied 49,000 concrete products for the West Gate Tunnel Project and is currently manufacturing more than 46,000 concrete segments for the North East Link Project.
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According to the government, construction of the SRL from Cheltenham to Box Hill is delivering economic benefits across Victoria, with more than 3000 people working on the project, and dozens of suppliers and sub-contractors from across the state involved in building the city-shaping project.
SRL is expected to help regional people access jobs and uni in Melbourne’s suburbs, and slash travel times across the state.
Trains will be taking passengers in 2035 according to the government.
“The Suburban Rail Loop is a project made by Victorians, for Victorians – and it will deliver thousands of jobs to support working families right across the state,” Premier Allan said.
Minister Shing said if the Liberals want to cancel the Suburban Rail Loop it would mean sacking hundreds of people in Benalla and thousands across Victoria.
Member for Northern Victoria, Jaclyn Symes, said the SRL means hundreds of jobs for Benalla, with the project set to provide an economic boost that will be felt throughout regional Victoria.
