Metro West Line To Drive New Development

The announcement that the proposed Metro West line will have a station at Westmead should stimulate new development in this precinct, says the Urban Taskforce.

“The announcement by the NSW Government that there will be a Westmead station on the West Metro line is good news for this precinct,” says Urban Taskforce CEO, Chris Johnson.

“The fast connection between Parramatta and Sydney will be a great stimulus for Parramatta and for key sites along the route. The announcement that stations are being considered at Camelia/ Rydalmere; North Burwood/ Five Dock/ Kings Bay and Pyrmont, as well as the previously announced stations at Sydney Olympic Park and the Bays Precinct, opens up great potential for new development.”

“The West Metro line will be the key public transport artery underpinning Sydney’s growth. As indicated in the government’s media release the metro line could continue on to the new Western Sydney airport so linking the three cities proposed by the Greater Sydney Commission (GSC).”

“The Urban Taskforce are strong supporters of the NSW Government’s commitment to public transport infrastructure and of the potential for new development to be located around the stations.”

“There is, however, some confusion in the GSC’s Greater Sydney Region Plan about the potential for development along the Parramatta Road corridor which is adjacent to Metro West. Text on page 133 of the new plan implies that the GSC’s policies on protecting industrial land will not apply where the Parramatta Road Corridor Urban Transformation Strategy, released in November 2016, indicated residential development could occur on these sites. The plan, however, then goes on to say that local councils will need to review this as they produce their own Local Environmental Plans. This leaves many sites purchased by developers on the basis of the November 2016 plan in limbo with unclear futures. The Urban Taskforce urges the government to give greater clarity to this issue.”