Project Sydney: North-south Western Sydney rail link would solve housing crisis

A RAILWAY line linking Rouse Hill with Camden via the new Badgerys Creek Airport would help create 350,000 new dwellings, five new towns and more than 100,000 new jobs.

• New metro service to link Badgerys Airport with Sydney
• Labor Party pledges $400m for north-south rail link

BUILDING a railway line from Rouse Hill to Camden via the new Badgerys Creek Airport could solve Sydney’s housing crisis by creating 350,000 new homes, five new towns and more than 100,000 new jobs.

A new report into the proposed north-south rail link in Western Sydney has found the project will supercharge the area’s economy.

The new jobs could mean as many as a third of the estimated 300,000 Western Sydney residents forced to commute into the city every day could instead work locally.

The report by planning consultancy Urbis said: “The delivery of this rail corridor would be unique for Western Sydney with the infrastructure supporting increased density and improved amenity from day one”.

“Planning for higher densities within 800m walking distance from future stations could deliver over 350,000 dwellings if densities over 100 dwellings per hectare were considered,” the report said. “This is an additional 250,000 dwellings over and above business as usual if no rail line is delivered.”

Map of the proposed Western Sydney north-south rail link from Western Sydney councils and property owners. Picture: Supplied

The report proposes new developments similar to apartment-heavy suburbs of Rhodes, Wentworth Point and Victoria Park.

The state and federal governments are conducting their own study to decide where to put rail lines connecting Badgerys Creek Airport with wider Sydney.

It is due for release this year and will form a blueprint for the billions of dollars in infrastructure investment to flow from the airport’s construction.

RELATED: NORTH-SOUTH TRAIN LINE COULD ADD $44.7BN TO ECONOMY

Instead of a north-south rail link, NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance has shown a preference towards an east-west link running between the city and the new airport.

The federal Government has not publicly committed to either option but insiders say federal Coalition MPs are leaning towards the north-south rail link, which would link into the T1 western line at St Marys.

Known as The Western Sydney Rail Alliance, Camden, Liverpool, Campbelltown and Penrith councils are pushing for the north-south option, as well as major land owners Celestino, Ingham Property Group, University of Sydney, Sydney Business Park and the Perich Group.

Oran Park’s Matthew El-Akl, wife Julia and son Raphael-Matteo would love to see rail come to their suburb. Picture: Robert Pozo

Known as The Western Sydney Rail Alliance, Camden, Liverpool, Campbelltown and Penrith councils are pushing for the north-south option, as well as major land owners Celestino, Ingham Property Group, University of Sydney, Sydney Business Park and the Perich Group.

Penrith Mayor John Thain said the north-south line presents a “once in a generation opportunity to get this right so we do not have urban sprawl”.

“If it does not happen it will be crushing,” he said. “How many times can they widen the M4?

“Politicians keep telling us that we are an economic powerhouse and that we need to create jobs; well, this is a golden opportunity to get it right for generations to come.”

An earlier study by Deloitte found the railway line could create $44.7 billion in economic activity in Western Sydney between 2024 and 2040.

The north-south link is a key action plan item in The Daily Telegraph’s Project Sydney campaign, which is calling for better solutions for Sydney’s congestion as the city grows.