Honestly, if you've lived in Melbourne for more than a minute, you know the "City Loop is full" line has been the government's favorite broken record for a decade. Well, the needle finally jumped. As of January 2026, the Melbourne Metro Rail Project—officially the Metro Tunnel—is no longer just a massive hole in the ground or a series of frustrating weekend bus replacements. It is actually here.
We are currently in that weird "Summer Start" transition phase. Since late November, trains have been trickling through the new stations, but the real chaos (or "transformation," depending on who you ask) hits on February 1. That’s when "The Big Switch" happens.
Everything changes.
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Why the City Loop was basically a clogged drain
The whole reason we spent over $13 billion on this is that the City Loop was basically a bottleneck from the 80s that couldn't handle the 21st century. It was at capacity. You couldn't add a single train to the Sunbury or Dandenong lines without the whole system having a nervous breakdown.
By building a new 9-kilometer twin tunnel from South Kensington to South Yarra, the project effectively pulled three of the busiest lines out of the Loop. It’s like adding a bypass to a congested freeway.
The five new stations (And what they actually look like)
If you’ve been on the "taster" services this month, you’ve seen the stations. They don’t look like the old, grimy Flinders Street platforms. We’re talking massive vaulted ceilings and glass everywhere.
- Arden Station: This one is in North Melbourne. It’s supposed to kickstart a whole new precinct. Right now, it’s a bit of a lonely outpost, but it has this huge brick-arch entry that’s pretty striking.
- Parkville Station: Finally. A train to the hospital precinct and Melbourne Uni. No more tram-surfing from Melbourne Central just to get to class. It’s deep, and the "light well" design actually brings sunshine down to the concourse.
- State Library & Town Hall: These are the heavy hitters. They’re basically massive extensions of Melbourne Central and Flinders Street. You can walk underground from one to the other now.
- Anzac Station: Down on St Kilda Road. It has this giant timber canopy that looks like a floating origami bird. It’s meant to fix the "world's busiest tram corridor" problem by giving people a rail option instead.
The $13.48 Billion Question: Was it worth the cost?
Let’s be real—the budget wasn't exactly a straight line. It started at around $11 billion and ended up closer to $13.5 billion. Some critics, including the Victorian Auditor-General, pointed out that the contingency funds were basically gone by early 2024.
There were "ghost shifts," union drama with the CFMEU, and the unavoidable COVID-19 delays that pushed the "full" opening from late 2024 into early 2026.
But here’s the thing: now that it’s running, the "turn-up-and-go" frequency is the selling point. During peak hours, we’re looking at trains every three to four minutes between Watergardens and Dandenong. That’s a level of service Melbourne has never actually had.
What most people get wrong about the "Big Switch"
A lot of people think the Metro Tunnel is just for the Sunbury, Pakenham, and Cranbourne lines. That’s wrong. While those are the only lines inside the tunnel, their departure from the City Loop creates a vacuum.
On February 1, the Frankston Line moves back into the Loop. It’s a massive win for people in the south-east who have been forced to go direct to Flinders Street for years.
However, it’s not all sunshine. If you’re at South Yarra or Richmond, you actually lose direct access to the lines that now go through the tunnel. You’ve gotta change at Caulfield or Footscray. It’s a trade-off that has a few regular commuters pretty annoyed on Reddit and local forums.
The "Turn-Up-and-Go" Reality Check
The government loves the phrase "turn-up-and-go." In theory, it means you don't need a timetable. In reality, the 2026 timetable shows a 10-minute frequency for a lot of the day.
Is 10 minutes "turn-up-and-go"? For Melbourne, maybe. For London or Tokyo, absolutely not.
Still, the sheer volume of 1,000 extra weekly services is a massive jump. It’s the biggest shift since the original City Loop opened 40 years ago.
Actionable Insights for the 2026 Commuter
If you're trying to navigate this new map, don't just wing it on February 1.
- Check the "Big Switch" Timetable Now: The PTV app has been updated with the February 1 schedules. Look for the "Sunbury-Pakenham-Cranbourne" combined line.
- Learn the Interchange Points: If you’re coming from the West, Footscray is your new best friend for switching between the Tunnel and the Loop. In the East, it’s Caulfield.
- Explore the Underpasses: You can now walk from the State Library Station (CBD North) directly into Melbourne Central without tapping out. Use this to avoid the rain or the Swanston Street crowds.
- Watch the V/Line Changes: If you’re coming from Gippsland or Ballarat, your arrival platform might have shifted to accommodate the new through-routing of metro trains.
The project is finally alive. It’s expensive, it’s late, and the architecture is admittedly stunning. Whether it actually fixes Melbourne's congestion or just moves the bottleneck further down the line is the big test for the rest of 2026.
Your next move: Download the latest PTV network map that includes the Metro Tunnel alignment. If you haven't used the "Summer Start" free weekend travel yet, do it before February 1 to scout out the new station exits at Parkville and Anzac—they are significantly further from the old tram stops than you might expect.