The funding announcement for the Canberra to Sydney high speed rail has been met with an optimistic outlook by the local Greens and an Independent, ahead of tonight’s budget.

ACT Independent Senator David Pocock has welcomed the announcement towards the upgrades, saying he’s pleased to finally see some progress on a faster rail connection.

However, he says the investment isn’t enough to make a significant difference to travel times, that the 50-million dollars won’t go very far and feels a bit tokenistic.

Senator Pocock continuing to say the funding is less than 1 per-cent of the 6-billion dollars the Federal Government is tipping in for the suburban rail loop in Melbourne, or the 230-million dollars they’ve committed to a high speed rail between Sydney and Newcastle.

Meanwhile, the ACT Greens have said that the commitment is a welcome first step but is only a fraction of the investment needed to make the high speed rail a reality.