Cross River Rail was sold as a $5.4 billion project. The government now says it costs $19 billion

Cross River Rail is Brisbane's second river crossing for trains: a 10.2-kilometre line with 5.9 kilometres of twin tunnels under the CBD and the Brisbane River, and four new underground stations at Boggo Road, Woolloongabba, Albert Street and Roma Street. The former Labor government promised it would be finished for $5.4 billion by 2024.

In October 2025, the Crisafulli government put the "final cost" at $19.041 billion, after 11 months of negotiations with the contractors. First passenger trains are now expected in 2029.

Labor says that number counts things no government has ever counted as the cost of building a railway. Both sides agree it's a lot more than $5.4 billion.

The price tag, year by year

What's in the $19 billion?

This is the fight at the centre of the story. When the LNP government first revealed its figure in December 2024, it broke it down roughly like this:

• More than $10.5 billion to build the tunnel and stations, including private financing payments and 25 years of maintenance
• About $5 billion for integrating the line into the network, a new signalling system and temporary rail replacement buses, which the government says Labor "chose to hide" by spreading it across other budget lines
• About $1.5 billion for running late and contractor claims

The Cross River Rail Delivery Authority now says $12.4 billion of the total is for the design, construction and maintenance of the twin tunnels and underground stations, and the rest covers works such as new and rebuilt surface stations, stabling yards and the European Train Control System signalling.

Former transport minister Bart Mellish says no government, business or person has included the cost of maintenance for the life of an asset when working out what it cost to build. In December 2024, shadow treasurer Shannon Fentiman called it "a world-first, very creative accounting measure".

Even taking Labor's side of the argument, the line was already late and over budget on Labor's own figures by 2022, and the extra integration and signalling work still has to be paid for by someone.

What went wrong

Delays that pushed the opening back five years. Labor's 2022 update had first trains in early 2026, three months later than planned. The LNP government's review pushed that to 2029.

Industrial disputes. The government says more than 140 days were lost to protected industrial action, with knock-on effects from unprotected action, which it blames on the CFMEU.

COVID-19, floods and supply chains. When he announced the 2022 increase, then transport minister Mark Bailey blamed the pandemic, La Niña, the war in Ukraine and supply chain disruption, and said a 17 per cent increase was a lot lower than other megaprojects in the country.

What you're getting for it

The authority says journeys will be quicker, with new stations closer to where people want to go, and that the line will add room for more trains as south-east Queensland grows. Beyond the four underground stations, the project includes a new Exhibition station, seven rebuilt suburban stations between Dutton Park and Salisbury, and three new Gold Coast line stations at Pimpama, Merrimac and Hope Island. The government says it is part of a wider rail program to support south-east Queensland's growth "in 2032 and beyond", the year Brisbane hosts the Olympics.

Who's to blame?

Labor promised the line, set the $5.4 billion budget, and was in charge for most of the build until the October 2024 election. The LNP government blames Labor's "mismanagement" and the CFMEU. Labor says the LNP inflated the number to make it look worse.

Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg says the new contracts include performance-based payments: "We've put contractors on notice. There are now clear expectations and consequences."

Your share: the jump from $5.4 billion to $19.04 billion works out to about $2,400 for every Queenslander (on a population of about 5.6 million). On Labor's way of counting, it would be less, but no one has published that number.

Top photo: the Roma Street construction site for Cross River Rail, Brisbane, April 2021. Photo: Chris Olszewski, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.