Putting your money where your mouth is

With the threat of cancelling what is objectively the most important line in Sydney Metro’s planned network, Metro West supporters of all persuasions are urging Premier Chris Minns to not just to continue the metro line to Parramatta, but to increase the number of stations. There are few surprises in the self-serving arguments driving these now passionate advocates of greater public investment in a project Minns openly questions.

?In a rare display of support for state government spending beyond her council's boundary, Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore is on board with Sydney Metro West, provided the City of Sydney gets an eighth metro stop at Zetland.

?And you can always count on the Urban Development Institute of Australia (UDIA) and the Urban Taskforce to get behind government largess on public transport when coupled with higher density rezoning, just don’t mention financial contributions from their members.

?The University of Sydney makes a logical pitch for a station to serve its growing student population, undermined slightly by the claim that Camperdown is the “epicentre of investment”.

?Gail Connolly, Parramatta City Council Chief Executive, provides a beacon of light shining through this fog of parochialism. Connolly points out that Sydney Metro West’s focus on delivering 20 minute travel times between Sydney CBD and Parramatta CBD is “massively out of date” (and likely always was). The entire underserved corridor between Sydney Olympic Park and Parramatta deserves another hard look given its potential contribution to the housing crisis.

?The challenge facing Mike Mrdak’s review of Sydney Metro is convincing Chris Minns that sometimes it takes a buck to make a buck. Fortunately, there is now ample evidence that major transport project like Sydney Metro, Fast Rail and even High Speed Rail can generate significant levels of self-funding. The recipe for capturing this funding is clearly laid out in guidelines developed by TfNSW and the Department of Planning. The guidelines implement recent changes to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 set out in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Amendment (Housing and Productivity Contributions) Bill 2023 passed by Parliament in June.

?Sydney Metro West should be completed and new stations added where justified by applying TfNSW’s guidelines for major transport projects. The Minns government should revise its funding strategy for the project by applying these guidelines to all stations on the line, not just the Pyrmont station as is now the case. In this way, additional funding required for new stations and supplemental funding for the original eight station project can be generated by the project itself.

This won’t be easy. It will require all beneficiaries of Sydney Metro West to put their money where their mouth is and look beyond their individual self-interests.