Sydney Metro South West: Rail options for stations west of Bankstown on the table
Rail users are calling on Transport for NSW to make the options being considered for stations west of the controversial Sydney Metro Southwest to be more visible so commuters can have their say on routes.
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A community action group is calling on Transport for NSW to make future rail options for stations west of Bankstown more visible so more commuters can have their say.
The state’s transport agency has begun community consultation as it considers rail service options for the T3 Bankstown Line, west of Bankstown once the controversial Sydney Metro City and Southwest is up and running.
The metro system, due to operate from 2024, means changes need to be made to the existing suburban railway west of Bankstown.
Three options are on the table, with Transport for NSW nominating option two as its preference.
This would include direct services to the city for commuters at Liverpool, Warwick Farm, Cabramatta, Carramar, Villawood, Leightonfield, Chester Hill, Sefton, Regents Park and Berala.
It would also mean less crowding on the T2 Line as most Liverpool-Cabramatta customers opt for the Liverpool-city service via Regents Park services, according to Transport for NSW.
Roydon Ng, of the Restore Inner West Line group, said option two was also the group’s preferred option and effectively meant restoring the former Inner West Line to Liverpool via Regents Park, which was cut in 2013.
However, he said combining options two and three — whereby services would operate between Bankstown and the city circle via the Inner West — would be more ideal.
“While it’s encouraging that Transport for NSW is considering restoring the former Inner West Line to Liverpool via Regents Park, the on-the-ground community consultation has room for improvement,” he said.
Mr Ng said many commuters were unaware of the potential future rail options and wants the information to be more visible, “especially on the ground at train stations” within the limitations of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Transport for NSW is conducting an online survey, which is open until July 27.
The pandemic has meant face-to-face consultations cannot take place while poster space at stations has been devoted to public health messages.
“We are encouraging customer feedback through a variety of ways including local paper advertising and via targeted social media channels and letter box drops,” a Transport for NSW spokesman said.
“We are also contacting a number of key stakeholders, including local councils, local MPs, high schools and hospitals for feedback and to encourage these bodies to promote participation in the online survey through their own channels.”
“Feedback can also be provided by emailing projects@transport.nsw.gov.au or by calling 1800 684 490,” the spokesman said.
A final option will be confirmed later this year, taking in feedback from the consultation period as well as more than 150 items of feedback received earlier this year.
Mr Ng said it was important details of the rail options were advertised clearly because “most people don’t realise how the trains will be cut”.
“The main issue behind this is how Sydney Metro Southwest has been marketed over the last five years. It’s been marketed in a way the government always talks about Metro Southwest as an upgrade of the Bankstown line … they deliberately overlook the fact it’s Sydenham to Bankstown and there's all these stations west of Bankstown, which is 60 per cent of the line.”
He said given the three options outlined by Transport for NSW can be delivered using available infrastructure, there was no reason the former Inner West Line to Liverpool and Bankstown via Regents Park could not be restored immediately, giving southwest Sydney commuters more options to reach the city.