Railways and Tramways of Australia

Light Rail in Australia

David Matheson

19 July 2018

updated 18 December 2025

 

Light rail provides an efficient form of urban public transport. Although similar to tramways, light rail generally operates with multiple unit vehicles that are faster and have a higher passenger capacity than older trams. Light rail mostly operates along its own right-of-way, but may also include some sections where the track is laid along streets used by road vehicles and pedestrians. Light rail became increasingly popular from the 1980s and various new systems were opened around the world, particularly in cities in Europe and North America.

 

Australian light rail systems are in operation in Sydney, Parramatta, Canberra, Newcastle and the Gold Coast. Melbourne has an extensive tramway system, including two routes, from the CBD to St Kilda and to Port Melbourne, which operate as light rail lines. The Glenelg tram line in Adelaide also has many characteristics of a light rail line. All light rail lines in Australia are standard gauge (1435 mm).

 

Sydney Light Rail

Sydney Light Rail is managed and operated by Transdev and has three lines:

• The L1 Dulwich Hill line extends from Central station to Dulwich Hill through Darling Harbour, Pyrmont, Glebe, Lilyfield and Lewisham West. Most of the line is built along the formation of a former goods railway. It is 12.7 km long and there are 23 stops.

• The L2 Randwick line extends from Circular Quay to Randwick via Town Hall, Central and Moore Park. It is 9 km long and has 14 stops.

• The L3 Kingsford line shares the L2 line from Circular Quay to the corner of Anzac Parade and Alison Road, near Moore Park, and then extends to Kingsford. There are five stops along the 3 km section from the junction with the L2 line to Kingsford.

Urbos 3 Light Rail Vehicles operate over the Sydney Light Rail L1 line from Central to Dulwich Hill. After assembly in Spain, they were separated into sections for shipping to Australia. The Urbos 3 Class vehicles are completely low-floor and their body is made of aluminium. They have a maximum speed of 80 km/h. Urbos type Light Rail Vehicles are in service in numerous cities in Europe, North America, South America and Asia.

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Citadis 305 Light Rail Vehicles were ordered to provide services on Sydney Light Rail’s L2 and L3 lines from Circular Quay to Randwick and Kingsford. They commenced service in December 2019. Each has a length of 33 metres, but in service they operate in coupled pairs, with a total length of 67 metres and capacity for 450 passengers. On board Passenger Information Displays provide information about the route and approaching stops. They are maintained at a depot near Royal Randwick light rail stop.

 

Parramatta Light Rail

Parramatta Light Rail is operated by Great River City Light Rail. It runs between Westmead and Carlingford, including through the Parramatta CBD. Between Rosehill and Carlingford it follows the route of the former Carlingford heavy rail line. The line is 12 km in length and has 16 stops. Its route is referred to as L4 Westmead and Carlingford Line. Sections between

Westmead and Cumberland Hospital, and between Prince Alfred Square and Tramway Avenue, do not have overhead and the Light Rail Vehicles are powered by on-board batteries. Stage 2 of Parramatta Light Rail will extend to Sydney Olympic Park.

 

A fleet of 13 Urbos 100 Light Rail Vehicles entered service in Parramatta to inaugurate the light rail line in December 2024. They are similar to the Urbos 100 LRVs in operation in Newcastle, and the Urbos 3 LRVs that operate on the Sydney Light Rail L1 line but have seven sections whereas the others have five. They have a low floor throughout

 

Newcastle Transport

The Newcastle light rail line is 2.7 km in length and runs from Newcastle Interchange at Wickham to Newcastle Beach. It runs through the city centre along the former heavy rail corridor and Hunter Street, before continuing to its terminus. There is potential for future extensions to suburbs such as Mayfield, Merewether and Adamstown.

 

Urbos 100 Light Rail Vehicles entered service in Newcastle to inaugurate the light rail line in February 2019. They are similar to the Urbos 3 LRVs that operate on the Sydney Light Rail L1 line. Since the Newcastle light rail line does not have overhead wires, the Newcastle Urbos 100 vehicles have on-board energy storage that can be recharged at stations. They have a low floor throughout, and include luggage racks and surfboard racks. Their possible maximum speed is 80 km/h, but in service they are restricted to 40 km/h

 

Canberra Metro Operations (CMET)

Canberra Metro Operations (CMET) has been contracted to maintain and operate Canberra’s light rail network. Stage 1 was opened in April 2019 and extends from the city to Gungahlin via a 12 km route along Northbourne Avenue, the Federal Highway, Flemington Road and Hibberson Street. The route starts north of Alinga Street in the city and finishes east of Gungahlin Place on Hibberson Street in Gungahlin. It includes 14 stops. Construction work is underway on extension south to Commonwealth Park. Plans for future extensions from the proposed city terminus include possible routes to Canberra airport, the Parliamentary Triangle, Belconnen and Woden. Stage 2 will extend from the city via Parkes and Barton to Woden.

 

Canberra’s light rail is operated by Urbos 3 light rail vehicles, with the first entering service with the opening of Canberra’s first light rail line in April 2019. They are the same model as the Urbos 3 light rail vehicles in service in Sydney, although there are some differences in the interior layout. The Canberra vehicles include Wi-Fi and space for bicycles. The seat fabric has artwork by Aboriginal elder Jimmy Williams, and the exterior has a red and grey livery. Their maximum speed in service is 70 km/h. A total of 14 are in service.

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Gold Coast Light Rail (G:link)

The Gold Coast light rail system is called G:link, commonly referred to as the G. It was built and is operated and maintained by GoldLinQ, a privately-owned company, which the Queensland Government contracted to build, operate and maintain the Gold Coast light rail system. The first section of the line opened in July 2014 between Gold Coast University Hospital and Broadbeach South. It was extended from Gold Coast University Hospital to Helensvale heavy railway station in December 2017, in time for the Commonwealth Games, which were held on the Gold Coast in April 2018. The line extends 20 km, has 19 stations, and operates with 750 volts DC.

 

Services on the Gold Coast Light Rail line are operated by Flexity 2 Light Rail Vehicles. The Flexity 2 Class was introduced to inaugurate the line in 2014. These Light Rail Vehicles consist of seven modules. They are the longest type of tram or light rail vehicle to ever have been used in Australia, with a total length of 43.5 m, and have a maximum speed of 70 km/h. Built in Germany by Bombardier Transportation, 14 Flexity 2 Class members initially entered service, followed by a further four in 2017.

 

Construction is underway on an extension from Broadbeach South to Burleigh Heads, which will be 6.7 km in length.

 

Yarra Trams (Melbourne)

Yarra Trams operates the Melbourne tram network, which consists of 250 km of double track, making it the largest operating tram network in the world. Approximately 80 per cent of the network is built on roads and is largely a tramway network rather than a light rail network. However, two lines are in effect light rail lines: Route 96 from Southbank Junction to St Kilda, and Route 109 from Southbank Junction to Port Melbourne. Both of these light rail lines were built as railway lines, but converted to light rail in 1987. The Melbourne to St Kilda line opened as a railway in 1857, and opened as a light rail line on 20 November 1987. The Melbourne to Port Melbourne line was Australia’s first steam-powered railway when it opened in 1854, and after conversion, it opened as a light rail line on 18 December 1987. Both of these railways were broad gauge (1600 mm) lines and were converted to standard gauge (1435 mm) when converted to light rail.

 

Services on Route 96 to St Kilda are typically operated by C2, E and E2 Class trams. The C2 Class are five-section low-floor articulated light rail vehicles that were manufactured by Alstom at La Rochelle in France. They were obtained second-hand from the city of Mulhouse in France, and entered service in Melbourne in 2008. They have seating for 56 passengers.

The E Class has 55 members, the first of which entered service in 2013. They are three-section articulated light rail vehicles that were built by Bombardier Transportation in Melbourne, although some components were manufactured in Germany. At over 33 metres in length, they are Melbourne’s longest trams or light rail vehicles, and have seating for 64 passengers. The E2 Class are Melbourne’s newest trams and began operating in 2017.  Thirty are being built at Dandenong in Melbourne, but not all have commenced service yet. The E2 Class trams are very similar to the E Class, but have a redesigned cab, reduced glare to improve visibility for the driver, and additional handholds for passengers. They have seating for 64 passengers.

 

Services on Route 109 to Port Melbourne are typically operated by A1, A2 and C1 Class trams. The A1 Class are three-door, bogie saloon trams that were built by Commonwealth Engineering at Dandenong in Melbourne. They commenced operating in 1984. Both the A1 and A2 Class trams have seating for 42 passengers. The A2 class are similar to the A1 Class and commenced service in 1985. They have some upgraded features, such as improved braking, and were built with pantographs, a new fixture for Melbourne trams at the time. The C1 Class are three-section low-floor articulated light rail vehicles that were manufactured by Alstom at La Rochelle in France. They commenced service in 2001 and have seating for 54 passengers.

 

Adelaide Metro

Adelaide Metro owns and operates the Adelaide tramway network. The main route is 15 km in length and runs from the Entertainment Centre at Hindmarsh through the Central Business District to Moseley Square at Glenelg. Much of the line has its own right of way that is separate from road traffic, but it runs along roads in the Adelaide Central Business District and at Glenelg. Lines also extend along North Terrace to the Botanic Gardens, and 100 metres north along King William Road from North Terrace to the Festival Centre.

 

Two tram types operate in Adelaide: the Flexity Classic and Citadis 302 light rail vehicles. The Flexity Classic type are three-section articulated low-floor light rail vehicles that were built by Bombardier Transportation at Bautzen in Germany. Fifteen members of the class are in service in Adelaide, and they are similar to trams operating in a number of European cities. They first entered service in 2005 and were ordered to replace some of the older H Class trams that had been in service in Adelaide since the 1920s. Each Flexity Classic tram has seating for 64 passengers. They have raised end sections with motors underneath and are low-floor throughout the remainder of the vehicle.

 

The Citadis 302 type are five-section articulated low-floor light rail vehicles that were designed for service in Madrid in Spain, but became surplus and were purchased by Adelaide Metro. They were built by Alstom in La Rochelle, France. Six entered service in late 2009 and early 2010. They are completely low-floor vehicles and are similar to the C2 Class trams in service in Melbourne. Another three Citadis 302 trams were ordered by the South Australian Government in 2017. They were built in 2010, and then stored in Madrid until arriving in Adelaide in late 2017, and commencing service in 2018. The Citadis 302 trams have seating for 54 passengers.

 

References

Adelaide Metro <www.adelaidemetro.com.au>.

Canberra Metro Operations <www.cmet.com.au>.

G:link <www.ridetheg.com.au>.

GoldLinQ <www.goldlinq.com.au>.

Newcastle Transport < www.newcastletransport.info>.

Parramatta Light Rail <www.transportnsw.info/travel-info/ways-to-get-around/parramatta-light-rail>.

Trainline 12, Department of Infrastructure, Transport Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts, Canberra, 2025.

Transdev <www.transdevsydney.com.au>.

Yarra Trams <www.yarratrams.com.au>, <www.kdrmelbourne.com.au>.