13 February 2010
The transport vision for Sydney unveiled by the Sydney Morning Herald today should be examined by both the government and opposition alike, according to the Urban Taskforce.
The plan was prepared by Ron Christie and an independent expert team with the backing of the Herald.
Sydney has not been coping with the demands placed on its creaking infrastructure by both population growth and demographic change, Mr Gadiel said.
Sydneys population is anticipated to grow to 7 million people by 2050.
Even if we have zero population growth over that time, we would still require hundreds of thousands of new homes in Sydney to respond to demographic changes more people living alone as singles.
New public transport infrastructure creates an opportunity for more of Sydneys new housing to be accommodated around high quality public transport.
It also means that the State Government can deliver on its promise to allow more people to live within 30 minutes by public transport of a city or major centre.
However, any investment in new public transport infrastructure must be accompanied by efforts to encourage new pedestrian-friendly communities around the new train stations, light rail and bus corridors.
New compact, pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use neighbourhoods should bring together housing, workplaces, shopping, and recreation areas within walking distance of public transport.
The inquiry’s head, Ron Christie, has urged an immediate start on two heavy rail lines:
- a $3.7 billion line, which would link Epping station and Rouse Hill in the north-west;
- a $1.3 billion line joining Glenfield station to Leppington in the south-west;
- a $2 billion rail line from Epping to Parramatta via Carlingford, beginning in 2013;
- a $2 billion heavy rail line directly connecting Bankstown and Liverpool, beginning around 2017;
- light rail lines, costed at about $600 million, based around the key centres of Parramatta, Bankstown, Lidcombe and Liverpool;
- major extensions of bus priority lanes and dedicated rapid transit busways; and
- an immediate start to $3 billion worth of light rail and ferry projects in the CBD and inner suburbs.
The difficult part of any major infrastructure plan is the funding arrangements, Mr Gadiel said.
Were ready to discuss how such an investment can be funded with either the government or the opposition.
Its crucial that any funding model does not drive private investment away from Sydney.
Mr Gadiel said there would be difficulty if the existing CBD Metro was cancelled without full compensation for those that have participated in the bid.
It would be unlikely that bidders will be rushing to part of NSW Government projects in the future if they have already been asked to bid on a project that does not proceed, and no compensation is paid for the costs incurred.
The confidence of the industry in the process would be strengthened by compensation to bidders in the CBD Metro project to cover their very substantial bid costs.
The Urban Taskforce is a property development industry group, representing Australias most prominent property developers and equity financiers. The construction activity made possible by property developers contributes $78 billion to the national economy
