Federal Labor opposition leader Anthony Albanese described high speed passenger rail as an "economic game changer" for regional cities like Wagga.
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In a speech on tapping the potential of regional Australia, Mr Albanese said a train service travelling at more than 300 kilometres per hour would "revolutionise regional economies".
"High Speed Rail opens up the possibility of people commuting to capital cities while enjoying the lower cost and lifestyle benefits of regional living," he said.
"It would encourage businesses to move or establish themselves in regions.
"It would also be an economic game changer for communities on its path with proposed stops at...Canberra, Wagga Wagga, Albury-Wodonga and Shepparton."
The concept of a high speed rail link between Brisbane and Melbourne has been talked about for decades but has seen little progress.
The cre8tive co. founder Mariam Rehman, who has campaigned for better passenger rail for Wagga, said high speed rail would benefit the city.
"You can see now that tourism and the amount of people moving out here is growing and transport is a major thing," she said.
Committee 4 Wagga Chief executive Alan Johnston said the theory of greater rail connectivity with something the think tank would like to see.
"My concern is to whether Australia has sufficient population and infrastructure budget capacity to have a strong business case for high speed rail," he said.
"We'd like to see it explored to its fullest possible extent and then have built what is possible, as anything would be better than what we have got."
Riverina MP and Transport Minister Michael McCormack said the government had established the National Faster Rail Agency to support delivery of a 20-year Faster Rail Plan.
Faster rail aims for an average speed of 160 kilometres per hour.
"Investing in faster rail will create jobs, stimulate regional economic and reduce congestion - giving time back to commuters, allowing more people to enjoy the wonderful lifestyle our regions have to offer while still accessing our cities, and encouraging more business to set up in regional Australia," Mr McCormack said.
Mr McCormack referred to studies on high-speed rail that estimated it would need $114 billion, a decade for planning and 30 years for construction.
"Australia also has large distances and relatively small population centres outside our major cities," he said.
"All of these factors make the roll out of high-speed rail very challenging and this is why the government's focus remains on faster rail."