Alternative to Proposed T3 West of Bankstown Line

Recently, Transport for NSW has invited community feedback on three potential options it is investigating for the T3 Line in 2024 when the Southwest Metro is expected to open. These three options are illustrated below.

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Upon review of the three options, I have devised an alternative route for the T3 line. My proposal was put forward to Transport for NSW as a public submission during the public exhibition period of the 'Have your say on the T3 Line'. My alternative proposal and submission is detailed below.

---

18 July 2020

General Manager Transport for NSW

projects@transport.nsw.gov.au

To Whom it May Concern,

Public Submission for ‘Planning for Rail Services West of Bankstown’

Reference is made to the proposal for rail services west of Bankstown made by Transport for NSW in February 2020. The proposal details three options for the T3 Bankstown Line, proposing to operate in 2024. Upon review of the three proposals, I wish to propose an alternative route that I believe would bring about a better planning outcome and support the vision for the Central River City as outlined in the Greater Sydney Commission’s A Metropolis of Three Cities.

Proposed Alternative My proposed alternative solution is illustrated in the following graphic.

My proposal for the T3 line includes terminating stops at Liverpool, Westmead and Bankstown. Services will run primarily as follows.

This alternative provides greater access to employment opportunities and critical services to some of the most disadvantaged communities in Australia. Justification for my proposal is set out under the following headings.

Alignment with Greater Sydney Commission’s “Metropolis of Three Cities” One of the key strategic priorities for Sydney is establishing a ’30-minute city’ in which residents of Sydney will have 30-minute access to metropolitan clusters and/or centres regardless of their location within the metropolitan area. Through the provision of rail services to both the City Circle and ‘Central River City’, this strategic priority can be realised for communities west of Bankstown. For the purposes of this proposal, data from the Australian Census relating to employment locations of resident workers by LGA is reviewed below.

The above data is indicative of the employment locations of resident workers for communities west of Bankstown. It can be assumed that the majority of residents in these areas work within their own LGA. However, it is noted that the City of Sydney is typically ranked higher than Parramatta as an employment location, despite the close proximity of the Parramatta CBD. It can be surmised that residents of communities west of Bankstown are more likely to commute to the Sydney CBD than Parramatta to access employment opportunities.

A better planning outcome for communities west of Bankstown would be to provide enhanced public transport access to the employment opportunities and critical services available in the Parramatta CBD. This would ensure that the strategic vision of a 30-minute city outlined in the Metropolis of Three Cities is achieved. By providing direct rail services to Parramatta, suburbs such as Carramar, Villawood, Leightonfield, Chester Hill, Sefton, Yagoona, Birrong, Regents Park and Berala would be within 30-minutes commuting distance (by public transport) to critical services and employment opportunities.

Further justification for my proposal and the re-orientation of these suburbs towards the employment opportunities and services offered in Parramatta can be found in the Metropolis of Three Cities and the strategic vision for the Central River City. Suburbs west of Bankstown are located within the ‘Central River City’ as outlined in the Greater Sydney Commission’s A Metropolis of Three Cities (illustrated below).

A direct train line to Parramatta would be a better strategic and transport planning outcome, that is in line with the strategic priorities outlined for the Central River City. It is noted that within the Metropolis of Three Cities, that a new transit line is envisioned between Bankstown and Greater Parramatta. It is assumed that this mass transit line is to be delivered through a new metro project. However, there is existing rail infrastructure that can provide direct access to the Parramatta CBD for residents and locals in areas west of Bankstown. It is considered that establishing direct rail services between stations west of Bankstown and the Parramatta CBD would effectively re-orient employment and job opportunities towards the Central River City in this area.

My proposed alternative includes the T3 line terminating at Westmead Station. I consider this to be a better planning outcome as it will provide residents in suburbs west of Bankstown access to health services and employment opportunities within the Westmead precinct. In addition, the proposed alternative would be appropriately aligned with the new metro services proposed at both Westmead and Parramatta.

SEIFA Index and identified need for greater access to employment opportunities Further justification for my proposal can be found by looking at SEIFA data for suburbs west of Bankstown (see figure below).

As illustrated in the above graphic, SA1 communities within 750m walking distance of T3 Stations are amongst some of the most disadvantaged in Australia. It is considered imperative that the residents of these areas are given accessible and efficient public transport access to as many jobs, employment opportunities, and services as possible in a diverse range of industries - including health (for example the health and innovation precinct at Westmead), office and retail (Parramatta and Sydney CBD), and education (University campuses at Parramatta). Through the provision of high public transport accessibility to employment opportunities and critical services, SEIFA data for communities west of Bankstown can be expected to improve significantly over time.

Further Proposal - Extension of Parramatta Light Rail Stage 2 In addition to the proposed alternative for stations west of Bankstown, I would like to propose that the NSW Government investigate the extension of the proposed Parramatta Light Rail Stage 2 from Sydney Olympic Park to Lidcombe. This would further facilitate access to employment opportunities for residents west of Bankstown. In the existing proposed plans, residents would need to change at Lidcombe for a connecting service to Sydney Olympic Park and then change once more for Light Rail services to Parramatta via Rydalmere. An extension of the Parramatta Light Rail Stage 2 to Lidcombe would provide more direct services for passengers interchanging at Lidcombe Station.

Should you wish to discuss any aspects of my proposal, please contact me by email or phone.

Yours Sincerely

Douglas Bennett