Plans for new metro rail linking Parramatta and Sydney CBD poses light rail queries

QUESTIONS are being asked whether a new heavy rail line linking Parramatta to Sydney CBD will compromise the Parramatta light rail.

Western Sydney’s light rail network will connect Parramatta’s CBD to the key hubs of Sydney Olympic Park, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney University and Strathfield.

QUESTIONS are being asked whether a new rail line linking Parramatta to Sydney CBD will compromise the Parramatta light rail.

It is understood plans for a new metro link are in the works to alleviate the congested existing heavy rail line between Parramatta and Sydney city. The new rail line could also link Parramatta to the new Badgerys Creek airport.

But media reports the new rail line would affect or replace the light rail have been challenged.

Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue chairman Christopher Brown said the dialogue was supportive of a metro rail line from the CBD to Parramatta but it needed to be part of a total public transport solution that included light rail and a connection that links the northwest and southwest growth areas of the region.

The State Government says the Parramatta Light Rail project is on track.

Mr Brown dismissed the reports the metro rail line from Sydney, through the Bays Precinct, Olympic Park, Parramatta and finishing at the biomedical hub at Westmead, posed a threat to the light rail project.

“ ... There is no way that Premier (Mike) Baird would break a promise to deliver the light rail to the long suffering residents of the west. This government came to power on the back of an angry electorate sick of broken transport promises from its Labor predecessors and we know that Mike Baird is a man of his word, and this urban transformation project is needed to finally give life to the Olympic Peninsula.”

Parramatta state Liberal MP Geoff Lee said the State Government was committed to building the billion-dollar Parramatta Light Rail.

“Parramatta light rail is going to transform our city and suburbs. This is the largest light rail project in NSW. It covers 23 kilometres stretching from Westmead to Strathfield and the replacement of the Carlingford line,” Dr Lee said.

Western Sydney’s light rail network will connect Parramatta’s CBD to the key hubs of Sydney Olympic Park, Westmead Hospital, Western Sydney University and Strathfield.

He said light rail would accommodate up to 9000 passengers an hour and connect major employment hubs to suburban centres.

“Today I have spoken to the Transport Minister (Andrew Constance) who has confirmed that the detailed evaluation of the exact route is well-underway and the announcement of the selected streets and stops should be made prior to the end of the year.”

Western Sydney Business Chamber director David Borger said a metro connection between the two cities would supercharge jobs growth in Parramatta and would help connect almost 300,000 people in western Sydney who travelled more than 45 minutes to work each day, to jobs.

Western Sydney Business Chamber director David Borger says Parramatta needs both light rail and fast rail.

”Parramatta needs light rail and fast metro rail just like the Sydney CBD,” Mr Borger said.

“We have seen in the past that time kills all deals. We need confidence that it will be delivered. “If we are serious about being a polycentric city with multiple employment nodes then we need a transport system that can deliver fast reliable and frequent connections between the two CBDs,” he said.

When asked about the new metro line, a Transport NSW spokesman said Transport NSW had committed to refreshing its plan for transport services over the coming decades — which would be released for consultation next year.

“The NSW Government is also working closely with the Federal Government to look specifically at rail needs for western Sydney to support the growing population and provide connections to the new airport. This study will look at a range of rail options,” he said.