First Stop Western Sydney to Save High Speed Rail

Redesigning the planned High Speed Rail route to put Parramatta at the heart of the project would save at least $15 billion – and stop it being derailed by an outdated vision of Sydney, according to leading advocacy group, the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue.

Speaking at the Dialogue’s annual Airport City Summit featuring Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Chairman Christopher Brown AM said a Western Sydney-first High Speed Rail would be delivered
sooner, at lower cost and make it fit for the future.

“The proposed high-speed rail from Newcastle to Central and future leg to Parramatta and the new airport, is convoluted, costly and doesn’t stack up,” Mr Brown said.

“There’s a real risk the current proposal will run off the rails because it’s planning a transport network for what Sydney looked like a decade ago and not for the Sydney of today or tomorrow.

“It’s Western Sydney that’s driving population growth, job creation and infrastructure investment, and that’s why it needs to be Sydney’s first stop for High Speed Rail.

“We applaud the Prime Minister’s unwavering commitment to high-speed rail, Western Sydney
International Airport, Moorebank Intermodal and the incredible infrastructure investment that has helped shape Western Sydney into a thriving region ready to welcome the world.

“Now we need to keep building for the future. A direct Newcastle to Parramatta approach would mean lower construction costs, save at least two years off the delivery timeline and cater for the population and economic shifts already underway. It would see passengers headed for the CBD simply transferring to the brand new Western Sydney Metro at Parramatta.

“Prioritising Central Station as the primary hub risks locking in a 20th-century transport model that fails to reflect where people live, work and travel today, and where they will be in decades to come.”

Under the case proposed by the High Speed Rail Authority (HSRA), stages 1A and 1B will comprise the first section of the line connecting Sydney Central to Newcastle. Stage 1C would connect Sydney Central to WSI via Parramatta.

The reported estimated cost for stages 1A and 1B is $55 billion. Stage 1C would cost an additional $15 – 35 billion. Stages 1A and 1B would be delivered by 2038 and stage 1C by 2041.

Under the Dialogue’s proposed High Speed Rail redesign:

• The HSR would travel from Newcastle to Parramatta, avoiding the costly detour to Central.
• Earlier delivery and lower project complexity would be achieved by removing the need for Stage 1C, with completion in just 2 stages: Central-Newcastle and Newcastle-Parramatta-WSI.
• This approach would shorten the route by 25-30 kms.
• With urban tunnelling costs estimated at $500 million per km, the revised alignment could
  deliver savings of at least $15 billion.
• Big savings would be achieved by avoiding another Sydney Harbour crossing and a huge new
  underground station in the crowded Central precinct.

Modelling by the Dialogue shows cost savings generated by the proposed alternative route would help make it feasible to deliver the Newcastle-to-WSI section as the first stage of the corridor,
conservatively saving $15 billion in taxpayer funding, and as much as $35 billion, and arriving at Parramatta two-three years earlier.

The Federal Government has already committed $659.6 million to planning and early work on the HSR, with total costs to connect to WSI projected to reach up to $90 billion.

With the project expected to be shovel-ready within two years, Mr Brown has urged the Government to model both rail route options for review.

“We call on the Prime Minister to direct the HSRA board to spend the allocated $660 million for the scoping report to be broadened to include the viability of both options to determine which approach is best – not just for the West but the whole of NSW and beyond,” Mr Brown said.

“Decisions made today will lock in how Sydney moves, grows and connects for generations. This is a project decades in the planning and one that will impact us economically for many years to come. We can’t afford to get this wrong.”

Download the full briefing here: High Speed Rail Briefing