Melbourne’s much-hyped underground rail service will open with a soft-launch timetable before moving to turn-up-and-go trains.

The $15 billion Metro Tunnel will open to the Victorian public in early December, with 240 extra services to run alongside the existing timetable for the Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham lines.

Extra services in the “summer start” period will run every 20 minutes from 10am to 3pm between Westall and West Footscray on weekdays.

Weekend services will run every 20 minutes from 10am to 7pm between Westall and West Footscray, every 40 minutes from East Pakenham and 60 minutes from Sunbury.

Regular Sunbury, Cranbourne and Pakenham services will continue to run through the City Loop until the full turn-up-and-go timetable takes effect on Sunday, February 1.

Those lines will ripped out of the loop at that point, with trains running through the Metro Tunnel every three-to-four minutes during peak times.

Frankston services will return to the loop as the entire network’s timetable is overhauled.

The Victorian government has been tight-lipped on the exact opening date for months, willing to say only it would be later in 2025.

Addressing Labor faithful and media on Tuesday, Premier Jacinta Allan said the summer start was key to the tunnel opening safer, smoother and sooner.

“It’s been the honour of my life to see this project through,” she said.

The project includes five new underground stations and will connect through twin nine kilometre tunnels under the city.

The Metro Tunnel was originally costed at $10.9 billion when it was first announced in the 2016 state budget.

Several escalations have pushed the price tag for taxpayers to $13.48 billion. But the total construction bill is beyond $15 billion after factoring in extra payments to builders.

Another $727 million was set aside in the May budget to operationalise the project.

Early works construction on the mega project began in April 2017, with tunnelling beginning in August 2019.

The final two completed stations at Town Hall and State Library were unveiled on Sunday and Monday. Major construction on the Anzac, Parkville and Arden was completed in 2024.

Test trains have run through the tunnels since June 2023.

In September, drivers were stranded for hours after electromagnetic interference led to a shutdown.

Sydney Metro opened to much fanfare in August 2024 and the Allan Labor government will be hoping for a similar boost before heading to the polls in November 2026.

-AAP