title: Melbourne Airport railway station
text: # Melbourne Airport railway station
  
  Melbourne Airport railway station is a proposed station on the planned Melbourne Airport railway line that will serve Melbourne Airport. It was scheduled to open in 2029, but the project is now facing delays.
  
  In September 2022, the state government said the airport station would be an elevated structure built near the terminals, rather than an underground station, as this would be quicker to build, cheaper and cause less disruption.
  
  ## Platforms and services
  
  The station is planned to be part of the Melbourne Airport rail link which connects with the Metro Tunnel. Trains will terminate at the airport before departing towards Sunshine, stations in the Melbourne CBD before becoming the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines.
  
  Platform 1:
  
  * Airport line express services to Cranbourne and Pakenham
  
  Platform 2:
  
  * Airport line express services to Cranbourne and Pakenham
  
  ## Project delay
  
  Previously planned to open in 2029, in the lead-up to the May 2023 state budget, media reports suggested there may be a delay in the construction of the airport link. In a radio interview, Deputy Premier Jacinta Allan said slow and difficult negotiations with Melbourne Airport over the use of airport land for the station had caused delays.
  
  Airport management had previously objected to the station being elevated, calling for the station to be underground in order to facilitate its plans for terminal expansion.
  
  On 17 May 2023, the state government confirmed that contracting for further works on the airport rail link would be temporarily paused and no new contracts would be entered into until the completion of a major Commonwealth Government review of the country's infrastructure pipeline.
  
  