Revealed: Plans for new 11km light-rail run on one of Sydney’s busiest roads

The consortium behind Sydney’s light rail network is proposing a new 11-kilometre line along Parramatta Road in the inner west to Central Station and on to Green Square in the inner south, the cost of which is likely to run into billions of dollars.

Under the plans, the line would run from an existing stop at Taverners Hill, along Parramatta Road and Broadway to Central Station, and then through Redfern and Waterloo to Green Square.

An artist’s impression of the proposed light rail line along Parramatta Road.

The ALTRAC consortium that designed and built the $3 billion CBD and south-east light rail line has presented plans to the state government for the new line, which would have about 21 stops. It is yet to do detailed costings, which would be determined by route design and other considerations.

ALTRAC chief executive Duncan Edghill said the Parramatta Road–Green Square corridor was “very compelling”, offering the greatest benefits of various routes considered.

“It is a place that needs a bit of George Street light-rail magic,” he said of the much-maligned Parramatta Road.

Edghill said the benefits would extend to the urban area along the route, citing the transformation of George Street in the CBD following the completion of the light-rail project five years ago.

“There is a super compelling argument for the expansion of light rail. At the Green Square end, we have the most densely populated part of Australia, and it would be the mass-transit solution,” he said.

Detailed costings of the route would be the next detailed piece of work, which Edghill said would be similar in cost to that of Sydney’s other lines, such as the Parramatta light rail.

Transport for NSW has estimated the entire cost of the 22-kilometre Parramatta line, which is being built in two stages, at $6.8 billion.

Under the latest plans, ALTRAC would finance the upfront design and construction of the new Parramatta-Green Square line, while in return, the government would pay the consortium over an extended period for the delivery of light-rail services.

If accepted, it would be a similar deal to that for the CBD and eastern suburbs light rail, which opened four years ago.

The consortium is a partnership between Aware Super, infrastructure investor John Laing and Spain’s Acciona. It subcontracts French company Transdev to operate and maintain Sydney’s three existing light rail lines.

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, who is seeking re-election in September council elections, said she would take a proposal to the council next month for a $100 million commitment for public domain improvements alongside a new light rail line to Green Square. It would include footpath widening, tree planting, new street furniture, paving and lighting.

Under ALTRAC’s plans, the light rail line would extend to the City of Sydney’s library at Green Square.

The City of Sydney council has spent $40 million progressively buying land to preserve a four-kilometre corridor from the CBD to Green Square.

Moore said a light-rail line could rejuvenate Parramatta Road after years of successive governments talking about it but failing to take action. “Parramatta Road is nine lanes wide in some sections. With WestConnex now open, traffic there has greatly reduced,” she said.

Light rail along Parramatta Road has been proposed on scores of occasions over the last decade. Disruption to the key arterial traffic route along Sydney’s east-west spine from the construction of a line is one of the major challenges. One lane of traffic in each direction is likely to have to be removed for light-rail tracks.

Edghill said the consortium was conscious of the need to reduce disruption during construction.

A spokesperson for Transport Minister Jo Haylen said the government was delivering better priority for buses on Parramatta Road while remaining focused on both stages of the Parramatta light rail project.

Inner West Council’s Labor Mayor Darcy Byrne said a major public transport intervention was the one thing that would revitalise Parramatta Road, and open the way for higher-density housing along the corridor.

“The community still feels cheated that the dedicated public transport lanes on Parramatta Road, which were a condition of approval for WestConnex, were never delivered by the former government,” he said.

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