Project Sydney: Public transport the key to everything
SYDNEY’S fastest-growing region is being starved of jobs because of a dire lack of public transport that is also failing to link Greater Sydney to entertainment and sport. See how your suburb rates as a place to live, work and play.
Project Sydney
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SYDNEY’S fastest-growing region is being starved of jobs because of a dire lack of public transport that is also failing to link Greater Sydney to entertainment and sport.
Five years after the launch of The Daily Telegraph’s campaign to improve the fortunes of the west, a new report reveals a vast upturn at Parramatta due to significant investment.
HOW DOES YOUR SUBURB COMPARE?
And locals say the area is finally becoming its “own city”. But the report also shows that people living just 10km away are being locked out of a better life.
Our “CityPulse” ranking and report, by consultants PriceWaterhouse Coopers, provides never-before-seen insight into how Sydneysiders live their lives using a metric system that analyses “live”, “work” and “play” opportunities across 267 areas.
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For each of the three sectors, areas are given a score out of 10 depending on their performance on issues like job accessibility, housing and entertainment.
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The average results were 5.1 for “live” and 4.8 respectively for “work” and “play”.
Crucially, the “CityPulse” research reinforces the case for the hotly debated Sydney Metro West and to extend the rail line to Blacktown, Liverpool and Fairfield.
Fast-tracking projects that provide crucial job creation at Western Sydney Airport and health hubs at Westmead and Liverpool will also boost rankings for the Greater Sydney region.
Trendy suburbs such as Erskineville, Alexandria and Mascot were among the top performers. And Baulkham Hills has been propelled into one of the most desirable places to live because of the North West Metro at Bella Vista.
Parramatta also ranked in the top 10 places to work.
But other areas have been overlooked. Despite their natural beauty, Blue Mountains suburbs such as Leura, Megalong Valley and Wentworth Falls all scored one or less across all metrics. Other areas that scored “below average” included Minto, St Andrews, Tregear, Richmond and Lurnea.
A key component of the CityPulse data is an area’s accessibility — specifically what can be accessed within 30 minutes by car or public transport. The performance of Tregear and picturesque Blue Mountains suburbs is hampered by accessibility, higher unemployment rates and low activity on new housing approvals compared to city areas.
It can also be revealed that a critical “zone” of need was identified in areas bounded by Parramatta, Bankstown, Liverpool and Wetherill Park. But PwC Australia’s infrastructure and urban renewal partner Kylee Anastasi said these areas still have the potential to be revitalised by “prioritising investment into key transport”.
Ms Anastasi said the committed Sydney Metro line from the CBD to Bankstown “will spark growth and renewal towards this area, as well as the regeneration of Bankstown as a key activity centre”.
“However, without the continuation of significant transport such as Sydney Metro through to Liverpool and the surrounding areas, we will miss the opportunity,” she said.
The Coalition government announced a metro for Western Sydney in late 2016 but has faced criticism from Labor for not committing any funding to the project.
The government has said the project will include an underground station at Westmead and connect the Parramatta and Sydney CBDs via an underground tunnel in a journey that could take as little as 20 minutes.
While the project remains stalled, congestion worsens — the CityPulse data showed dozens of suburbs within 10km of the west end of Parramatta have “below average” job accessibility by public transport.
Despite falling unemployment across the region, some pockets remain a concern too. Data showed the areas with the highest unemployment were clustered together in Fairfield, Fairfield East, Fairfield West and Guildford.
The unemployment rate for Fairfield was an alarmingly high 9 per cent in December 2017.
Western Sydney Business Chamber director David Borger likened Sydney Metro West to a project “as bold as the Sydney Harbour Bridge”.
CityPulse researchers said plans for the region “need to draw upon the innovative mindset of (Harbour Bridge engineer) John Bradfield”.
Metro could prove a boon for Liverpool
Extending the Sydney Metro West to Liverpool could turn around the area’s fortunes and improve access to jobs for the young and growing population.
The area scored a dismal 3.5 out of 10 for “work”, owing to its lack of access to jobs, and is also hamstrung by high dependence on welfare and subpar community health scores.
This is despite its “well-educated, ethnically diverse population”.
The results bolster the case — demanded in this year’s Project Sydney Action Plan — to redevelop Liverpool Hospital into a thriving health precinct linked to TAFE and University campuses and the vision for the Western Metro in the 2056 Future Transport strategy. Meanwhile Bankstown, 20 minutes away from Liverpool, has struggled with “below average” public transport and a lack of open spaces.
The government has agreed to build the Sydney Metro West from the CBD to Bankstown although it has not divulged a time frame or allocated funding for it.
Penrith, 54km from the CBD, scored poorly on all counts — Live (2.6) Work (2.7) and Play (2.3) as the region’s growth lags.
In the Macarthur region, a further 800,000 residents are expected to make their home within the next 20 years. But there are not enough homes for them, according to PwC.
It is one of the problems facing fast-growing Campbelltown in southwestern Sydney, which is also “heavily reliant on manufacturing jobs”.
But a planned health precinct and extending the North South Rail link to Campbelltown from Western Sydney Airport could be the key to jobs, more housing and a bright future for the area.
Gabrielle Coffey has lived in Campbelltown her whole life and is happy in the area.
She is one of the lucky ones, having a job close by to her home.
