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Inland rail link halved after $45bn cost blowout

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It was lauded as one of the biggest infrastructure investments ever for regional Australia. Now the roughly half-complete Inland Rail Project has been officially scaled back. The 1,600km route was first intended to transport freight between Melbourne and Brisbane. But with the projected cost blowing out to $45 billion, the government says the project will instead finish in the NSW town of Parkes, pledging to redirect money to improve existing freight networks.
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