Mackellar MP Jason Falinski has called for NSW Government to revisit northern beaches metro plans

The freshly returned MP Jason Falinski has called on the State Government to revisit plans for a northern beaches metro line.

Jason Falinski has called for metro on the northern beaches

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The freshly returned MP Jason Falinski has called on the State Government to revisit plans for a northern beaches metro line.

The Mackellar MP said he would be a “stone in the shoe” of NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance as he attempts to get him to resurrect a plan which was cancelled by the former Labor administration in 2010.

The proposal was to have a line running from Martin Place to Dee Why with stops at Circular Quay, Victoria Cross, North Sydney Oval, Neutral Bay, Spit Junction, Manly Vale and Warringah Mall. In 2009 it was estimated the line would cost $5.8 billion to build.

“You only have to go to London, Paris, Hong Kong or Singapore to see metro lines work in major cities,” he said.

“It will take pressure off our roads and will help connect a part a Sydney where 24 per cent of Australia’s GDP happens.”

Jason Falinski MP said a line on the beaches would ease congestion on the roads. Picture: AAP Image / Adam Yip

Mr Falinski said a “hub and spokes system” would work best in which the rail line would act as the hub with buses, Uber etc the spokes, feeding passengers into the rail system from the surrounding suburbs.

A lot of opposition to rail on the northern beaches over the years has centred around fears of overdevelopment.

However, Mr Falinski said the line could in fact save some of our most beautiful areas from over densification.

Transport Minister Andrew Constance with Premier Gladys Berejiklian on the first train from Tallawong Station to Chatswood of the new Metro line. Picture: David Swift.

“With a metro line you can then focus major developments around the transport hubs where the infrastructure can cope.

“Then you can alleviate the pressure on Avalon, Bilgola, Newport and maintain their character.”

A spokeswoman from Transport Minister Andrew Constance’s office said the former Labor government’s plans were not on their agenda, adding that the NSW Government is focused on delivering the Beaches Link tunnel.

She added: “When Sydney Metro City and Southwest opens to commuters in 2024, people in the northern beaches will be able to catch a B-Line bus to Victoria Cross Station where they can seamlessly transfer onto a Metro.”