Proposed railways in Sydney
Due to the rural nature of this area and the likely consequent low patronage levels, there was no great rush to construct this line.
World War I led to the collapse of all three proposals, and it was not until 1922 that the Bridge Bill passed through parliament, and 1923 until the first sod was turned on the city railway.
This was the first comprehensive metropolitan landuse and transport plan for Sydney's existing and proposed future urban areas.
By the early 1960s, large parts of these routes had been built on (much by another government body, the Housing Commission) and, without tunnelling, became unimplementable.
In 1990, the State Rail Authority undertook a feasibility study into the development of a new underground line along the western edge of the central business district.
The North West railway line from Epping to Rouse Hill would also later be completed in 2019 but as a Sydney Metro rapid transit system instead, utilising Epping- Chatswood section of the Parramatta Rail Link.
[11] In 2001, the Co-ordinator General of Rail, Ron Christie, released a report, the Long-Term Strategic Plan for Rail for Sydney, the Central Coast, Newcastle, the Illawarra, the South Coast and the Blue Mountains, which outlined the critical infrastructure that would need to be built between then and 2050 to ensure the long-term survival and operation of the CityRail network.
First introduced in 2004 by a consortium of Dutch bank ABN AMRO and developer Leighton Holdings, the project, dubbed the Penrith High Speed Link, was again floated in December 2006 and received favourable comments by the New South Wales State Government,[14] and was offered funding by Federal Opposition Leader Kevin Rudd should the Australian Labor Party win the 2007 Federal Election.
[14] On 15 June 2005, Premier Bob Carr shortly before his resignation announced the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP).
In 2006, Premier Morris Iemma placed planning controls along two potential corridors in the CBD (the MetroWest and MetroPitt routes) to secure future accessibility.
[6] Developers who wanted to excavate deeper than two metres within a 25-metre buffer zone of the corridors needed to seek RailCorp's approval.
However the other half was postponed indefinitely in 2003 by Transport Minister Michael Costa citing a lack of projected passenger numbers and economic viability.
Work was due to start in 2011, with a prospected 2017 finish, but the O'Farrell government cancelled the project, instead requesting that Federal funding be diverted to a more expensive upgrade of the Pacific Highway.
It was to consist of a 12-kilometre, twin-track railway running from Leppington and Edmondson Park to connect with the South line at Glenfield.
On 31 October 2008, the Premier revealed that the South West Rail Link was to be 'indefinitely shelved' due to budgetary constraints, and only an upgrade of the Glenfield Station car park was to proceed.
The six kilometre cross-tunnel was slated to cost $5 billion and was to include new or expanded stations at Redfern, Central, Pitt Street, Martin Place, Circular Quay, Victoria Cross, Crows Nest, St Leonards, Artarmon and Chatswood.
In early 2008, the NSW State government announced plans to build a metro line between the North West suburbs of Sydney and the CBD.
Controversial from the start,[30] the line was criticised for being too long, too expensive, and inappropriate for a low density suburban area.
It was to have run on conventional standard gauge track, similar to the existing CityRail network, but with single deck rolling stock.
[32] In October 2008, the newly appointed NSW Premier Nathan Rees cast doubts upon the likelihood of constructing the North West Metro, and instead proposed a short metro line between Central station and Rozelle via Town Hall and East Darling Harbour (Barangaroo), with the potential for further westwards extension to Macquarie Park and Epping.
Despite geotechnical work having been performed and the acquisition of properties in progress, in February 2010, the Government of New South Wales led by premier Kristina Keneally announced that it had cancelled plans for metro construction.
In December 2012, Premier Barry O'Farrell announced a new transport masterplan for Sydney and New South Wales after community feedback and discussion.
Proposed stations at St Leonards, Artarmon Industrial Area, and University of Sydney, along with line extensions to Hurstville and from Bankstown to Cabramatta and Lidcombe were removed in the announcement.
[46] Stations at Crows Nest, Victoria Cross in North Sydney, Barangaroo, Martin Place, Pitt Street, Central and Waterloo were confirmed.
[48] Following the passage of power privatisation bills in June 2015, the rapid transit system, including North West Rail Link, was renamed 'Sydney Metro'.
[49] In 2018, the NSW Government released a planning document for potential railway lines and other transport corridors to be built and/or upgraded by 2056.
