It is being reported that an airport rail link will finally be established in Melbourne.
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For years, rumours have flown of a rail link between Melbourne’s Tullamarine Airport, and the city.
However, the Victorian government has held off dedicating money to the project.
By all reports, the federal government is set to make it a reality by portioning funds towards it in the May federal budget.
"It's always been something that's been seen as an omission in Melbourne not to have a rail line out to the airport,” Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on radio this week.
"There is no doubt as our cities become bigger and more densely settled, you need to have more mass transit."
Now that Melbourne airport’s public transport is on its path to sorted, let us look at Launceston Airport.
In terms of public transport, the current options are taxi, or the Launceston Airporter shuttle bus (the Tassie version of the SkyBus, if you will).
Both are adequate options.
The shuttle meets each flight, and drops its passengers at various accommodation facilities around the city centre and Prospect, plus the transit centre.
It usually costs $18 for a one-way trip, with the occasional special dropping the price to $15.
Taxis, as we know, will take you just about anywhere.
However a cab trip from the airport to Launceston’s CBD can set you back close to $40, once that pesky airport tax is added on.
It’s been waxed lyrical that Tasmania is in tourism over-drive.
In 2016 we pulled a record 1.2 million visitors.
Northern Tasmania also recorded a 10 per cent increase in tourist numbers.
Not only that, flights in and out of the state have never been cheaper, so more Tasmanians are heading interstate for long weekends and holidays, too.
It is time to get ahead of the game, and build on our airport-city transport.
Sure, what we have now is little different to what Melbourne currently operates.
But as you’ll hear from any Melbournian who frequents the airport, the commute is a shocker.
The Victorian government waited to long to jump on their airport link.
We don’t have to.