Eastern extension of $25 billion Metro West line back on drawing board
The NSW government is seeking urgent advice within coming months about the potential to extend the $25 billion Metro West rail line eastwards from Sydney’s CBD.
An interim report into Sydney’s $65 billion metro rail projects has recommended that transport bureaucrats evaluate the feasibility and station options for a “potential eastern extension” of the Metro West rail line between the CBD and Parramatta.
Transport Minister Jo Haylen and Premier Chris Minns tour new platforms at Central station for the Metro City and Southwest line on Tuesday.Credit: Nick Moir
Under existing plans, the last station at the eastern end of the 24-kilometre line will be under Hunter Street in the CBD, while tunnels will be dug under The Domain to allow trains to be turned back.
The assessment of an eastern extension follows lobbying by Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore and federal minister and Sydney MP Tanya Plibersek for the state government to build a station at the inner-city suburb of Zetland, which forms part of the highly populated Green Square precinct.
Moore said Metro West had been designed to extend to Zetland, and a station there in the inner south was needed to help reduce congestion and manage increasing demand for public transport.
“We made it clear to the previous government, and again take up the call with the new government, that there is an urgent need to upgrade and increase public transport networks,” she said.
The previous Coalition government dropped plans in 2018 for a Metro West station at Zetland.
The interim report did not outline an eastern route for Metro West, but long-term blueprints have previously identified rail corridors from the central city to Randwick, Malabar and La Perouse.
The re-evaluation of plans for a Metro West extension come as the government committed on Tuesday to converting part of the T3 Bankstown rail line to carry driverless metro trains.
It will cost an extra $1.1 billion to complete the conversion of a 13-kilometre stretch of rail track between Bankstown and Sydenham, which will force tens of thousands of train commuters to catch buses for 12 months from the third quarter of next year.
A Metro West station was planned for Zetland, but the then Coalition government dropped the idea in 2018.Credit: Rhett Wyman
The interim review raised the prospect of delays of up to a year for work that is yet to be contracted for Metro West, the country’s biggest public transport project, to help pay for the extra $1.1 billion needed for the Bankstown line conversion.
However, it warned that changes to “procurement timings” was highly likely to delay Metro West beyond the targeted opening date of 2030 and push up the project’s cost. Sydney Metro has previously considered a range of scenarios that would delay the opening of the Metro West rail line until as late as 2034.
Premier Chris Minns said the review was looking at other funding options, and the government would release information about Metro West and other projects towards the end of the year.
He has left open the possibility of imposing levies – often referred to as value capture – on developers and other large landowners who benefit from the uplift in property values as a result of public infrastructure such as Metro West. “I’m not closing the door on it. We are looking at potential revenue measures that could see money coming into the project and sustain and justify the cost,” he said.
Amid a bus driver shortage, Transport Minister Jo Haylen said the government had started planning 12 months before the closure of the Bankstown line to ensure it had dedicated bus routes, including some express services, in place for commuters disrupted by the project. “We don’t want to sugarcoat this – it will be disruptive for passengers along the Bankstown line for 12 months,” she said.
Despite the looming disruptions for commuters, Liverpool’s Liberal mayor Ned Mannoun said the conversion of the Bankstown line to a fully fledged metro train link was needed.
“I don’t want to underplay the inconvenience, but we need significant investment in public transport to deal with the population growth,” he said. “The closure is one step back for five steps forward.”
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