Realignment of Western Sydney Corridors

In March 2018, the NSW Government had released draft corridors for four major future road and rail infrastructure corridors, that made up a total of 192 kilometres of land. To provide for the long-term transport needs of Western Sydney, the Government needed to identify and protect these corridors of land that can be used to deliver transport infrastructure when needed in the future. 

Following the draft release, the Minister for Western Sydney, Stuart Ayres, invited the community to provide feedback on the proposed alignment of these four corridors. The community consultation period lasted between 26 March and 1 June 2018, giving residents and businesses the opportunity to help shape the corridors. 

After receiving more than 6,000 submissions of feedback, the NSW Government announced alterations to their proposed Western Sydney Corridors plan. 

Ayres states that the changes should reduce the total number of properties impacted from 1247 to 825 and halve the number of residential dwellings impacted from 399 to 200. “We have listened to feedback and will continue to make refinements to the exhibited corridors as we work through the submissions made during the exhibition,” Ayres commented.

The corridor realignment also makes more efficient use of Government-owned land, leading to a reduction on the number of private residencies and properties impacted. As the Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight, Melinda Pavey, explains “these changes reflect the voice of the community”

Additionally, the Government is tackling the issue of land acquisition by allocating $100 million over two years for property owners who wish to sell their land following the rezoning process. The Centre for Property Acquisition, which oversees the land acquisition process, has recently revised and improved their standard process. This entity handles any requests to sell properties within newly rezoned areas caused by the development of the corridors. 

The following changes have been made to the Western Sydney Corridors from the community feedback:

 

• Continue with the previously gazetted 1951 corridor for the Bells Line of Road Castlereagh Connection

• Relinquish the section of previously exhibited Bells Line of Road corridor from Castlereagh to Kurrajong Heights

• Provide for a future tunnel of approximately ten kilometres from north of Cobbitty Road, Cobbitty to south-east of Cawdor Road, Cawdor to minimise the impact of the Outer Sydney Orbital on communities at Cobbitty, Brownlow Hill, Grasmere and Ellis Lane

• Relinquish the section of the Outer Sydney Orbital north of Richmond Road while continuing to work with the Department of Planning and Environment and local councils on future options, with a view of mitigating any further impact on homes

 

Until further refinements of the alignment are considered with affected property owners and communities, the NSW Government will not publish the remaining corridor plans. 

Future Western Sydney Corridors map: file:///C:/Users/pcintern/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/IE/SBRVKNL1/CP0056%20WSC_Refined%20Overview%20Map_0.pdf