The federal government announced $5 billion on Thursday to help build the rail link from the Melbourne CBD to the airport.

The state government is already working on a $30 million preliminary business case with the Commonwealth which is considering how the airport rail link could incorporate regional rail lines, particularly Bendigo, given it runs through Sunbury.

A diversion from either Clarkefield or Sunbury to the airport has been floated by rail experts, but there was no mention of regional rail during Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s announcement.

City of Greater Bendigo manager of regional sustainable development Trevor Budge said the council was confident that the Bendigo line would be considered in any Melbourne Airport rail link plans.

“If VLocity trains are used, we could see a one-hour airport-Bendigo trip given the express service to Sunbury takes an hour,” he said.

“That would obviously be a game changer for Bendigo, to have people flying into Melbourne who could then get to Bendigo in an hour.

“It was very encouraging to hear the public transport minister (Jacinta Allan) make it clear that the airport rail link should do more than just link the Melbourne CBD to the airport, and to unlock western and northern Victoria.”

The airport rail link was planned to be completed in stages in the coming 15 to 20 years. The state government announced in November that construction would begin at the conclusion of the Metro Tunnel in 2026.

During the announcement on Thursday, Mr Turnbull presented four options from Melbourne CBD to the airport, but only one would allow for regional fast rail to be included. The maps were from a 2012 Public Transport Victoria report.

Mr Turnbull expected the state government to match the $5 billion, and said the proposed routes include above-ground, underground and combined solutions.

Public transport minister Jacinta Allan said including regional Victoria in the plans was a priority.

“Our plans for an airport rail link include maximising the number of passengers who use the service, and particularly provide a connection for regional Victorians to be able to access the airport, access the city through higher fast speed rail,” she said.

“It is concerning to see this morning that the PM spent a lot of time talking about Melbourne, a lot of time talking about the benefits to Melbourne about an airport rail link.

“We’ve seen from experiences around the country and around the world that a point to point airport rail link doesn’t necessarily work for the maximum number of passengers.”

Mr Budge said a direct rail link from Bendigo to the Melbourne Airport would not impact the council’s plans to expand the services offered at Bendigo Airport.

He said there would still be a market for people to travel from Bendigo to cities like Adelaide and Sydney, rather than get the train to Melbourne Airport.