Why Sydney needs $4 billion a year for future metro projects

The inner-city extension of the Sydney Metro line opened with great fanfare in August, and it seems the hype has been justified. Thousands of people are streaming through the shiny new stations, and while foot traffic in some places has dropped, passenger numbers for rail use have surged overall. The opening of the section under the CBD was hailed as the biggest transformation to transport infrastructure since the opening of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and while history will ultimately be the judge of that, commuters are already voting with their Opal cards.

Where a new rail line has brought excitement, the closure of another brings a sense of dread. After the 12.25am train terminates on Monday morning, the T3 line between Sydenham and Bankstown will be closed for at least a year for conversion to metro standards. The inconvenience faced by up to 60,000 commuters a day will be real as the journey via buses will be twice as long.

End of the line: Sydenham train station.Credit: Edwina Pickles

Monday morning marks the start of the inconvenience, but the true major test of replacement services during the closure will come in two weeks with the end of school holidays. Transport authorities are expecting the new T6 shuttle train services between Lidcombe and Bankstown to be operating by the time schools reopen in mid-October. Trips on pink buses will at least be free, which is some compensation.

In the long term, the conversion will benefit those who live in south-western Sydney and the city as a whole. The full metro line known as M1 will stretch from Bankstown to Tallawong and serve as a fast new spine for the city’s public transport network. And there will be more to come when the Metro West doubles the rail link from Greater Parramatta to the CBD, predicted to open in 2032 at a cost of $25 billion.

Unfortunately, that is where any sense of certainty ends. As the Herald’s transport and infrastructure editor Matt O’Sullivan has revealed, further plans are under consideration for more tunnels and metro connections. These would stretch not only west to Bradfield and the new airport, but could also weave their way to the eastern suburbs.

That review, led by former federal infrastructure secretary Mike Mrdak, examined the options of six mega rail projects by the late 2040s. This is not as far away as it seems, given the scale of the undertaking, and it is worth thinking about and investing in now.

Mrdak’s team arrived at an “ideal assumption” of up to $4 billion a year in capital spending, and noted that rail development would bring strong opportunities for housing and economic development in the city’s west. It’s a prudent investment to keep the city moving and growing.

The time to start making the decisions and spending the money is now, as we cannot afford to get to the 2040s to undo any damage stagnation would leave behind. Just ask the 60,000 commuters who are not sitting on the T3 line this morning.

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