133.2km single-leg single-deck MMC-VC viaduct, taking the ridge route through the Watagan ranges. ~13-minute Newcastle–Sydney maglev journey at 600km/h, with no tunnels and no speed reduction. Self-building ridge construction methodology — the completed viaduct supplies its own access road to the construction front. By-product of the Phase 0 Megafactory — establishment cost zero.
| Corridor | Newcastle CBD → Cessnock → Watagan ridges → Hornsby → Parramatta → Sydney Central / WSA |
| Length | 133.2km |
| Maximum slope | 2.5° |
| Tunnels | Zero |
| Configuration | MMC-VC — single-leg, single-deck viaduct |
| Service | Maglev passenger only — 600km/h |
| Journey time | ~13 minutes Newcastle CBD to Sydney Central |
| Pylon height | Variable — 6m on flat terrain, 10–60m above ridge surface, up to 150m+ at valley crossings. Same production segment family stacks to required height. |
| Tubular | 13.375" L80 13Cr API 5CT (single per pylon — reduced from Phase 0's 20") |
| Cost — civil | Pending review |
| Total programme | Pending review |
| Production engine | Newcastle Megafactory — already running for Phase 0 |
| Establishment cost | Zero — absorbed by Phase 0 |
Route alignment is indicative. The corridor shown on the project map is a suggested alignment based on the current planning case. Final geometry is subject to detailed engineering — terrain survey, geotechnical analysis, environmental and cultural heritage assessment, and stakeholder consultation will determine the final alignment at detailed design.
A dedicated Phase 0-2 project memo (covering the ridge route, the self-building construction methodology, the Megafactory marginal cost argument, and the head-to-head comparison with HSRA Line 1) is in active engineering development and will be added here on release.
Memo 4 (SBC Phase 0 Maglev vs HSRA) on the Phase 0 page covers the comparison with HSRA's Sydney–Newcastle proposal at programme level. System-level memos applicable to Phase 0-2 are catalogued in the Library — the MMC-VC single-leg configuration uses the same Megafactory, foundation system, and segment family as MMC-VB.
Project-specific Phase 0-2 documentation — including the dedicated Phase 0-2 engineering memo, the ridge route specification, the self-building construction methodology details, and the rolling stock procurement strategy — is in active engineering development and will be added here as released.