Public Transport and Land Use Planning
in North West and South West Sydney
Calvin Cheng
An undergraduate thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement of the Bachelor of Planning Degree at the University of New South Wales.
November 2007
PLAN4132 Thesis Project
Calvin Cheng 3103753
November, 2007
Public Transport & Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney
Calvin Cheng 3103753 PLAN4132 Thesis Project
This thesis and the information within are solely for meeting the assessment requirements of course PLAN4132 Thesis Project, submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement of the Bachelor of Planning Degree at the University of New South Wales. Author: Calvin Cheng......
Signed: ......
Reviewer: Bruno Parolin ......
Signed: ......
Approved by: Bruno Parolin ......
Signed: ......
th Date: 13P P December 2007......
Distribution: UNSW Bachelor of Planning Program, RailCorp, NSW Ministry of Transport, Parsons Brinckerhoff Australia (PB)
Table of Contents
Page Number
AbstractTU UT ...... 1
AcknowledgementsTU UT...... 2
ListTU of abbreviations usedUT...... 3
1.TU UT IntroductionTU UT ...... 4
1.1TU UT ProblemTU Statement and Objectives UT 5
1.2TU UT OverviewTU of methodology UT 6
2.TU UT IntegratedTU Land Use and Transport PlanningUT...... 7
2.1TU UT EstablishingTU the scene UT 7
2.2TU UT IntegratedTU Land Use and Transport Models UT 9
2.3TU UT IntegratedTU Land Use and Transport Planning in North West and South West Sydney UT 16
2.4TU UT InterstateTU and Overseas Examples of Integrated Land Use and Transport Planning UT 30
3.TU UT HeavyTU Rail-Land Use RelationshipUT ...... 35
3.1TU UT IntroductionTU and Heavy Rail Service Planning Principles UT 35
3.2TU UT HeavyTU Rail Network Development in Sydney UT 38
3.3TU UT HeavyTU Rail and Land Use Connection UT 41
3.4TU UT AlternativeTU Public Transport Modes for the North West and South West Transport Corridors UT 42
4.TU UT NorthTU West Land Use and Transport Corridor Planning AnalysisUT ...... 47
4.1TU UT IntroductionTU UT 47
4.2TU UT NorthTU West Rail Link Project Description UT 48
4.3TU UT ExistingTU Public Transport Services UT 48
4.4TU UT NorthTU West Transitway UT 50
4.5TU UT PlanningTU analysis of the North West Rail Link UT 54
4.6TU UT LandTU Use and Transport Analysis UT 58
4.7TU UT FutureTU Influences on the Corridor UT 65
5.TU UT SouthTU West Land Use and Transport Corridor Planning AnalysisUT ...... 66
5.1TU UT IntroductionTU UT 66
5.2TU UT SouthTU West Rail Link Project Description UT 67
5.3TU UT ExistingTU Public Transport Services UT 67
5.4TU UT PlanningTU analysis of the South West Rail Link UT 69
5.5TU UT LandTU Use and Transport Analysis UT 72
5.6TU UT FutureTU Influences on the Corridor UT 76
6.TU UT EvaluationTU and ConclusionUT ...... 77
7.TU UT ReferencesTU UT ...... 78
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Table of Contents (continued) Page Number
List of tables
TableTU 1: Comparison of Bus and Rail Mode. UT 43
TableTU 2: Selected Travel Zones for the data analysis. UT 60
TableTU 3: Selected Travel Zones for the data analysis. UT 73
List of figures
FigureTU 1: North West and South West Rail Link in the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP)
context. UT 5
FigureTU 2 Integration of transport and land use outcomes. UT 7
FigureTU 3: Freeways vs. rail development patterns. UT 8
FigureTU 4: Sequence of activities in the Lowry Model. UT 10
FigureTU 5: Schematic representation of an integrated urban land use-transport model. UT 11
FigureTU 6: Institutional model for land use transport integration. UT 12
FigureTU 7: Screenshot of the TOD Trips Tool showing integrated land use and transport patterns. UT 14
FigureTU 8: Screenshots of output tables from the TOD Trips Tool. UT 15
FigureTU 9: Sydney Region Outline Plan. UT 21
FigureTU 10: City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy 2005. UT 23
FigureTU 11 (left to right): Metropolitan Strategy progress reports and draft Sub-regional Strategies. UT 24
FigureTU 12: Sydney Strategic Bus Corridor Network. UT 25
FigureTU 13: An example of an integrated network. UT 26
FigureTU 14: NSW State Plan and its relationship to other strategic documents. UT 27
FigureTU 15: Responding to Sydney’s Urban Travel and Transport Challenges. UT 28
FigureTU 16: Ultimate preferred rail network in Hong Kong SAR. UT 33
FigureTU 17: Rail planning cycle process. UT 37
FigureTU 18: Trouble spots in the rail network. UT 39
FigureTU 19: Reason for using car instead of Public Transport to work in North West and South West area. UT 46
FigureTU 20: Reason for using Public Transport instead of car to work in North West and South West area. UT 46
FigureTU 21: North West Rail Link Route Overview. UT 47
FigureTU 22: Contract region 4. UT 49
FigureTU 23: North West T-way network. UT 50
FigureTU 24: Parramatta Transport Interchange. UT 51 th FigureTU 25: North West T-way passenger count heading into Parramatta Station on Wednesday 12UP UP
September 2007. UT 52 th FigureTU 26: North West T-way passenger count heading into Parramatta Station on Thursday 13UP UP September
2007 UT 52
FigureTU 27: North West Rail Link Study Area. UT 59
FigureTU 28: North West Study Area Population Forecast. UT 61
FigureTU 29: North West Study Area Employment Forecast. UT 62
FigureTU 30: Total no. of trips into and out of NWRL Corridor by mode. UT 63
FigureTU 31: Total no. of trips into and out of NWRL Corridor by purpose. UT 63
FigureTU 32: Total no. of trips between NWRL Corridor and other parts of Sydney. UT 64
FigureTU 33: South West Rail Link Route Overview. UT 66
FigureTU 34: South West Growth Centre Structure Plan. UT 67
FigureTU 35: Contract region 2. UT 68
FigureTU 36: South West Rail Link Study Area. UT 72
FigureTU 37: South West Study Area Population Forecast. UT 73
FigureTU 38: South West Study Area Employment Forecast. UT 74
FigureTU 39: Total no. of trips into and out of SWRL Corridor by mode. UT 74
FigureTU 40: Total no. of trips into and out of SWRL Corridor by purpose. UT 75
FigureTU 41: Total no. of trips between SWRL Corridor and other parts of Sydney. UT 75
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List of photos
PhotoTU 1 (left): A Sydney Bus at Epping Station. UT 35
PhotoTU 2 (right): CityRail Intercity “V” set arriving at Epping Railway Station. UT 35
PhotoTU 3: Proposed location of SWRL stabling facility at Leppington. UT 40
PhotoTU 4: Rouse Hill Town Centre Stage 1. UT 40
PhotoTU 5: Parramatta Transport Interchange. UT 41
PhotoTU 6 (left): Rail based land use development patterns. UT 42
PhotoTU 7 (right): Road based land use development patterns. UT 42
PhotoTU 8: Half completed Dombarton-Maldon Line. UT 44
PhotoTU 9: Existing Wynyard York St Bus Terminus in AM peak weekday. UT 45
PhotoTU 10: Park and Ride Facility at Burns Road T-way Station. UT 53
List of appendices
Appendix A Household Characteristics, Population and Employment Forecast Data provided by Transport Data Centre, NSW Ministry of Transport.
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Abstract
North West and South West Sydney are two growth areas where land use planning has evolved around the private car as the dominant form of transport. This is evident by the multi-car households, abundance of car parking at shopping centres, business park developments, and new and existing road upgrade projects. The Government has recently announced major planning initiatives and projects in both sectors to accommodate Sydney’s growing population and to provide housing and job opportunities away from inner Sydney. Public transport is a crucial variable in the planning process. This thesis analyses the planning processes for the projected North West and South West Rail Links. The North West Rail Link is a new planned heavy rail link in an existing built-up area, whereas the South West Rail Link is planned for a future developing area. The thesis will critically examine the transport-land use relationship in these two contrasting areas and attempt to answer two fundamental questions. First, how successfully might these two rail links influence future land use patterns and redress the imbalance between private car and public transport usage. Second, and if they cannot, can Sydney afford to continue down the path of car dependency to the point where even its ‘global city’ status is questionable?
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Acknowledgements
The research and completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the acknowledgement and assistance of the following people and organisations.
o I would like to acknowledge the support of my family and friends who have been a great support and encouragement throughout my journey at University, without them, I would not be here writing this.
o RailCorp and Gary McGregor for awarding me the Scholarship in Railway and Transport Planning and for providing advice and assistance which has made the development and research of this thesis topic possible.
o Bruno Parolin, my thesis advisor for his valuable input, guidance and dedication in the research and development of this thesis from “conception” to “production”.
o Annette Hay and Luxshme Ranjan at the NSW Ministry of Transport (Transport Data Centre) for the provision of the Household Travel Survey data sets which has enabled a detailed transport-land use analysis of the North West and South West Rail Links in this thesis.
o The entire Traffic and Transport Planning group at my workplace, Parsons Brinckerhoff Australia (PB), particularly Wendy Adam and Graeme Steverson for their great support, advice and flexibility throughout my student and work life. PB has provided me with many opportunities through the involvement of various projects which has enhanced my interest and knowledge of transport planning.
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List of abbreviations used
DoI Department of Infrastructure (Victoria)
LEP Local Environmental Plan
NWRL North West Rail Link
SWRL South West Rail Link
HTS Household Travel Survey
DoP NSW Department of Planning, (post August 2005)
DIPNR Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources (pre August 2005)
MoT Ministry of Transport NSW
MREP Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program
PB Parsons Brinckerhoff Australia
TIDC Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation
GCC Growth Centres Commission
RTA Roads and Traffic Authority of NSW
SEPP State Environmental Planning Policy
TOD Transit Oriented Development
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1. Introduction “If ever there was proof that Sydney has become too big and is beyond a comfortable lifestyle, it must be the difficulties with commuting. The further Sydney spreads and the denser it becomes the greater the delays will be from heavy traffic. As Sydney grows the solutions to traffic congestion become more expensive and complicated. There is a desperate need for the State Government to provide safe and reliable public transport so that commuters have an alternative to driving or an alternative to high property prices closer to the City".
(Sydney Morning Herald reader’s opinions Thursday 5th May 2005)
“I used to commute daily from Castle Hill to the city via WestBus - and after 3.5 years of spending 20+ per week (on top of the fifty plus hours working) and half of those commuting hours standing on a packed bus - I spat the dummy and moved closer.
A rail network out that far would make all the difference, traffic in around the hills district is a nightmare, with poor planning and a government body that appears to listen to the council for its' traffic recommendations, yet make a recommendation to the council - and they send you to the RTA.
Development and redevelopment of the area has caused traffic levels to increase dramatically in the last ten years, yet nothing has been done to match this in terms of public transportation, other than a bus service.
I agree that dropping the price of bus fares probably made it more attractive to use public transport - but far more needs to be done”
th (Blog post on The Sydney Morning Herald Sydney’s Transport Future Blog 25P P September 2007)
These two “reader’s comments” on the Sydney Morning Herald are evidence of the extent of the transport and land use problems existing as Sydney grows and develops further out away from inner Sydney. Land use and transport have been two important variables in the planning process to “ensure an equitable and efficient distribution of resources”. The development of the North West and South West growth areas have been put as the way forward for developing and extending and enhancing Sydney’s
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“global city” status beyond Sydney CBD. This thesis will examine and analyse the North West and South West Rail links which are part of the Government’s Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP, see figure 1 below) and is a major component of “transport” in the City of Cities (Metropolitan strategy) in December 2005.
Figure 1: North West and South West Rail Link in the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP) context. (Source: Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation, 2007)
1.1 Problem Statement and Objectives North West and South West Sydney are two growth areas where land use planning has evolved around the private car as the dominant form of transport. The continued reliance on the private car in these areas without sufficient public transport as planning, growth and development continues raises questions about the “sustainability and “liveability” in these two areas, and how it may affect Sydney in the overall picture in the long run.
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The objectives of this thesis are to examine and analyse:
o The planning process of the proposed North West Rail Link in an “existing built up urban area” context.
o The planning process of the proposed South West Rail Link in a “future developing growth centre” area context.
o The role that “heavy rail” transport mode plays in integrated land use and transport relationship.
o Whether the North West and South West Rail Links are the answer to address the imbalance between public transport and private car usage?
o The consequences of land use planning in North West and South West Sydney if the two rail links were not to be built.
1.2 Overview of methodology The methodology for the research and development of this thesis involves the collection and analysis of transport and planning theory literature to ground the research question and objectives of this thesis as discussed before. Primary sources for this thesis include personal notes, photographs and observations made during site visits to the North West and South West Rail Link corridors, including an examination of existing transport and land use patterns on site. These primary sources were then reviewed with existing theory and practice literature and the numerous planning studies and reports done to date for these two areas.
To determine the potential land use planning impacts and demands of the two projected rail links, a comprehensive analysis of the Household Travel Survey (HTS) data sets supplied by the NSW Ministry of Transport was carried out to understand the travel patterns, population and employment forecast growth for the North West and South West Rail Link corridors.
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2. Integrated Land Use and Transport Planning
2.1 Establishing the scene To understand and achieve the objectives of this thesis, we need to define and examine the development of the integrated land use and transport planning concept. Transport and land use planning are intricate linked and related in shaping a town or region. Transport is a derived demand to “carry” people or freight from one place to another, and in order to achieve this, it requires planning and decisions on land use in order to actually provide the infrastructure to transport people or freight. Perhaps it is best described as a “co-ordination” of transport and land use planning (policy) outcomes. This is shown in figure 2 below which shows a Western Australian Government example of “integration” when the Department of Planning and Infrastructure (DPI) was created as the “central agency” or policy and planning lead role within the portfolio. NSW also made a similar attempt with the creation of the now defunct Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources from 2003 till August 2005.
Figure 2 Integration of transport and land use outcomes. (Source: Curtin and James, 2004) But when most people think of, discuss or practice the integrated land use and transport planning, there is a notion that it’s all about land use and “public transport” and not land use and the “private car”. I use the term “private car” as taxis and any other form transport service involving a payment by a passenger on “four wheels” are arguably a form public transport, whereas if I use the term “motor vehicle”, the distinction is not clear. So a question to consider is whether the integrated land use
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and transport planning concept will be significantly different if we apply it to either public or private transport. An example of how development differs between freeways and railways is shown in figure 3.
Figure 3: Freeways vs. rail development patterns (Source: Newman and Kenworthy 1993) Transport planning has developed in parallel with urban planning but seems to have avoided the major theoretical debates which have influenced social scientist thinking. Two possible explanations might be that transport is immune to debate or that the unique combination of engineers, economists, and social scientists working in transport make it difficult to have such a critical review. The latter explanation may be more likely as most of the criticism come from outside, but even then it seems to have been aimed at planning in general. Transport planning seems to have escaped (Banister, 1994)
Potter and Skinner (2000) consider the different approaches to transport integration. They consider what exactly is integrated with what? Rather than attempt a single definition, they argue that integrated transport is better viewed as scalar in nature, with higher levels incorporating lower, or narrower understandings of the term “integrated transport”.
Potter and Skinner (2000) constructed these “nested” definitions of integrated transport from reviewing the available literature to indicate some of the points on a scale of meaning.
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o Functional or modal integration: A policy enabling different travel modes to compliment each other, making multi-modal journeys easier
o Transport and Planning Integration: Land use and transport are closely linked in that the patterns of land use and facilities are direct influences on travel generation. Such as policy employs land use policy as a means of managing and reducing travel demand.
o Social Integration: At this level, all those who have a stake in transport have their needs considered. Adoption of such a policy would involve those who use and provide a transport service, and others such as organisations that are major trip generators (schools, shops, employment etc) and those suffering noise and vibration from transport.
o Environmental, Economic and Transport Policy Integration: Essentially, all of the above policies are combined in a holistic way. This has the effect of maximising the benefits from the transport system, providing the best opportunity for more sustainable transport.
2.2 Integrated Land Use and Transport Models To integrate transport and land use planning outcomes, and establish a platform for influencing the development of cities and regions, this section will examine some land use-transport models and policies.
Integrated urban-transport land use models have gained popularity since the 1980’s. Their development represents increasing recognition of the of the intricate connections of the between land use and transport systems, and of the corresponding need to model these systems in a fully integrated way (Bureau of Transport Economics 1998, p35)
The Lowry Model Lowry’s Model of Metropolis views the principal spatial properties of an urban area in three broad sectors of activities which are:
1. Employment in basic industries;
2. Employment in population serving industries; and
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3. The household or population sector.
With the Lowry model, the spatial distribution of basic employment is allocated exogenously to the model, and the spatial distribution of households and population serving employment are calculated by the model. The zonal allocation rules for both households and population serving employment are specified within the model structure. In addition, the constraints on the maximum number of households for each zone and the minimum population serving employment thresholds for any zone are specified. (Hutchison 1974 p150). The basic structure of the model is illustrated in figure 4.
Figure 4: Sequence of activities in the Lowry Model. (Source: Hutchison, 1974)
Schematic Representation of an Integrated Urban Land Use-Transport Model Figure 5 on the next page provides a schematic representation of an integrated urban land use-transport model. The model consists of two sub models; one for the land system and the other for the transport system. The representation of the land use system is rather simplified, focusing largely on components that directly interact with the transport system. Land use submodels are intended to explain how spatial choices are made for residential and employment locations. These are basically stipulated as a function of, among other things, locational accessibilities, which in turn depend on zonal attractiveness and travel costs.
The spatial distribution of residents and firms are assumed to create major demand for travel, which drives the development of the transport system. The interplay of
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demand and supply through transport costs forms the nucleus of interconnected causes and effect within the transport system.
The land use and transport systems are integrated through a mechanism of feedback between the two systems. The land use system supplies the transport systems with the estimates of the location and volume of travel generators. The transport system affects the land use system through the notion of accessibility, often in a temporary lagged manner. An integral part of such accessibility, changes in travel costs become part of the mechanism used to relocate labour, residence, and other urban economic activities. (Bureau of Transport Economics 1998, p37)
Figure 5: Schematic representation of an integrated urban land use-transport model. (Source: adapted from Southworth 1995)
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An Institutional Model for Land Use and Transport Integration This institutional model for integrating land use and transport was proposed by Curtis and James 2004 after the merging of the transport and planning agencies of the Western Australian State Government in 2001. The “traditional” institutional approaches based on separate transport and land use planning departments fragment and compound the ability to deliver an integrated and sustainable solution. The traditional approach tends to allow these separate agencies to maximise the achievement of their own objectives rather than deal with the compromises that may often be associated with effective integration.
The model developed as shown in figure 6 is a complex inter-related web, driven by the Western Australian Government policy and guided by the integration principles.
Figure 6: Institutional model for land use transport integration. (Source: Curtis and James 2004) The model draws together the principles of transport planning, land use planning, public policy and organisational behaviour. A case study of the Brighton-Butler area illustrates the operation and potential use of this institutional model. The Brighton Butler area comprises of Greenfield release areas accommodating 25,000 residents, provision for 10,000 jobs and a district centre with 23,500 sq.m of retail space. The aim of the planning exercise was to maximise “accessibility through proximity” by integrating the suburban railway into the proposed urban development, with a focus
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on mixed use transit-oriented development (TOD) and town centres as the location for employment (Curtis and James 2004, p293)
TOD Trips TOD Trips is a spreadsheet based tool developed by PB and Senior Transport Consultant Neil Prosser. TOD Trips allows for the rapid development and appraisal of integrated land-use transport scenarios. TOD Trips is implemented in Microsoft Excel and combines the following three elements of Excel:
1. Geospatial representations using scaled drawing elements
2. Spreadsheet data storage
3. Visual Basic macros
Scenarios are developed on screen and to scale using drawing tools. Scenarios combine land use zones within transit networks and capture the important geospatial relationships between the two. The geospatial representations of TOD trips overcomes the limitations of traditional transport models which represents land use zones as single centroids because the geospatial format is drawn according to actual boundaries (e.g. on an scaled aerial photograph or land use zoning map). The output from TOD trips is similar to the traditional transport model outputs including:
o Link, service and station patronage data
o Total patronage data by time period and purpose (e.g. work vs. non-work)
o Mode share results.
Additionally, TOD trips incorporate modules to allow for:
o Estimation of capital and operating costs
o Calculation of fare revenue
o Quantification of impacts on vehicle use e.g. VKT (vehicle kilometres travelled)
o Quantification of external costs associated with car usage such as noise, atmosphere, water pollution, climate change and severance
o Cost benefit analysis
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o Multi criteria assessment
o Capacity constrained transit assignment.
Figures 7 and 8 show a few screenshots from the TOD trips tool and output tables that was used to assess the feasibility of a new light rail system in Melbourne, Victoria.
Figure 7: Screenshot of the TOD Trips Tool showing integrated land use and transport patterns. (Source: PB, 2007)
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Figure 8: Screenshots of output tables from the TOD Trips Tool. (Source: PB, 2007)
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2.3 Integrated Land Use and Transport Planning in North West and South West Sydney “The Government is taking a new approach to land release to avoid making mistakes of the early 90’s to ensure that communities in new suburbs of Sydney have good access to transport, jobs and services” (NSW Department of Planning 2005. Managing Sydney’s Growth Centres)
The acknowledgement by the Government in its past policy failures in land releases without the provision of good transport and other infrastructure and services has planned and developed North West and South West Sydney the way they are today.
This section will look at the key state government agencies involved in land use planning and transport planning and also examine the land use and transport planning components of two post-war metropolitan plans for Sydney, being the 1968 Sydney Region Outline Plan and the 2005 City of Cities (Metropolitan Strategy).
Growth Centres Commission The Growth Centres Commission has been established by the NSW Government under the Growth Centres Commission Act 1974 to ensure that new development proceeds with infrastructure and services planned, funded and linked to the sequence of land release.
The Commission has the planning, development and financial management capabilities of a development corporation. The Commission will design and manage a streamlined planning and development approval process along with the timely provision of infrastructure promoting high quality new development.
The Commission is responsible for working with infrastructure agencies, industry, local councils, landowners and the community to make the plans for the Growth Centres a reality.
The Growth Centres Commission’s functions are:
o Preparing plans for the funding and development of regional infrastructure
o Controlling Precinct Plans for each precinct (or part of a precinct where anomalies exist in the boundaries) within the North West and South West Growth Centres
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o Recommending to the Minister for Planning new precincts for staged land release
o Administration - including collection, holding and management - of the new Special Infrastructure Contributions to pay for regional infrastructure
o Implementing regional infrastructure in consultation with state agencies to support new development; and
o Negotiating with government, landowners and developers to ensure development is facilitated in a sustainable and timely way.
By Establishing the Commission as a new body, the NSW Government, through the Metropolitan Strategy, can achieve:
o The orderly sequencing of land release in time with the provision of infrastructure
o The sustainable urban structure and form incorporated in the structure plan
o The protection of biodiversity, regional open space and water resources
o Contributions from new development for regional and local infrastructure
o Contributions from the State budget in recognition of the broader beneficiaries of many projects in the Growth Centres
(Source: Growth Centres Commission 2007: http://www.gcc.nsw.gov.au/the- commission.aspx)
NSW Department of Planning The NSW Department of Planning’s role is to lead strategies and decisions to support orderly growth and employment, generating activities that are environmentally and economically sustainable.
The department is the principal state government agency vested with statutory, policy and administrative responsibility for strategic land use planning, environmental planning impact assessment and development approvals. The Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act) provides the basis for the department’s role in administering the framework for Government activities and decisions in these areas.
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The major functions of the department are to:
o Oversee and implement Government policy in relation to land use planning and development, including supporting local Government functions
o Lead and co-ordinate state-wide planning strategies to guide growth and development in NSW and inform infrastructure planning, staging and delivery; and
o As the lead agency, advise the Minister and Government on the approval of major development and infrastructure projects of significance to the state’s economy and employment
(Source: NSW Department of Planning Annual Report 2005-2006)
NSW Ministry of Transport The Ministry of Transport was established in 2003 as a lead agency of the transport portfolio group, and is responsible for:
o Developing and coordinating high level transport priorities in NSW
o Providing funding for NSW public transport services and major capital works
o Planning and implementing NSW transport priorities in collaboration with other agencies
o Integrating policies, regulations and service initiatives across metropolitan and rural and regional NSW
o Regulating the NSW bus, taxi and hire car industries
o Managing NSW bus and ferry contracts.
(Source: NSW Ministry of Transport: http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/aboutus/trans-portfolio.html)
NSW RTA The NSW Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) is a statutory authority established in 1989 under the Transport Administration Act 1988. Its key responsibilities include:
o Managing the road network to achieve consistent travel times
o Provide road capacity and maintenance solutions
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o Test and licence drivers and inspection and registration of motor vehicles
o Improve road safety
(Source: NSW RTA Annual Report 2005-2006)
Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation The Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation (TIDC) is a State owned corporation established under the Transport Administration Act 1988 to develop major transport infrastructure projects for the NSW Government.
TIDC’s role is to develop and deliver major transport infrastructure projects as directed by the Minister for Transport, with the support of the “Shareholder Ministers”, in an efficient, effective and financially responsible manner.
The corporation is responsible for managing the development, planning, design, construction and commissioning of each project it undertakes. It is also responsible for ensuring environmental and safety standards are met during every project phase and in operation, for liaising with the community and stakeholders and for providing fiscal accountability to the NSW Government.
The aim of TIDC is to cost effectively deliver transport solutions in a timely manner that incorporate the most appropriate standards and technology, support the growth of New South Wales, enhance its natural and urban environments, provide tangible benefits for commuters and represent value to Government.
(Source: TIDC Annual Report 2006)
RailCorp RailCorp is a New South Wales Corporation consisting of the merged entities of the State Rail Authority of New South Wales and the metropolitan functions of the Rail Infrastructure Corporation. RailCorp was established as a corporation on 1 January 2004 under the Transport Administration Amendment (Rail Agencies) Act 2003.
(Source: About RailCorp: http://www.railcorp.info/about_railcorp)
Under the RailCorp organisation are CityRail and Countrylink which provide (operate) passenger train services within Sydney and regional and interstate rail
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services respectively. RailCorp is responsible for development and maintenance of railway infrastructure such as tracks and overhead wiring.
(Source: CityRail About Us: http://www.cityrail.info/aboutus/content/au_content_1.jsp)
Local Councils The responsibility (majority) for detailed strategic planning and development assessments is delegated by the states and territories to the Local Government. Local Government, overseen by elected representatives who form a local “council” refers to a specific jurisdiction or “Local Government Area” (LGA). The policy, administrative, procedural, financial responsibilities of Local Government in Australia, is wholly regulated by state legislation. (Gurran, 2007, p97). At Local Councils, “development” is controlled and regulated by the Local Environmental Plan (LEP), Development Control Plan (DCP), both of which fall under the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979. In the event of inconsistencies between local and state planning instruments, controls etc, the state one normally prevails.
Sydney Region Outline Plan (1968) The Sydney Region Outline Plan (SROP) of 1968 was the third metropolitan strategy for Sydney (see figure 9 on next page) which arose out the creation of a new state level agency, the State Planning Authority in 1964. The SROP was based on the population of Sydney reaching about 5.5 million by the year 2000 and that development was to be based along existing transport corridors which had radiated out away from the Sydney CBD, these corridors in turn was the basis for job and housing opportunities.
Corridors were also especially reserved for transport and utilities such as water and electricity. To achieve those aims, the “outer” suburbs of Camden, Campbelltown, Blacktown, Mount Druitt and Penrith were designated as “cities” to provide services and jobs for the growing population.
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The SROP was different from its predecessor, the Cumberland Plan, in that it was not a statutory document and thus was never formally adapted by Government. Nevertheless, its legacy, success and failure can be seen in Sydney today, such as the pattern of Sydney’s development over the last 40 years as originally proposed in the SROP, but also the abandonment of freeway projects such as the original Warringah Freeway which was to eventually link up with Wakehurst Parkway and the Northern Beaches and the Gladesville Bridge which was part of the original Sydney- Newcastle Freeway Alignment.
Figure 9: Sydney Region Outline Plan (Source: www.metrostrategy.nsw.gov.au)
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A major factor which led to the “failure” of the SROP was the Sydney Area Transportation Study (SATS) 1974. This study was lead by an overseas expert and there was great interest amongst the public in observing how this study would solve the transport problems at the time. This study was based on the year 2000 population projections of the SROP and adopted a methodology used in the United States in the 1960s “forecast future land use and population, generate a matrix of future trips between zones, create hypothetical future transport network options, assign trips to public transport and road networks and then assess the network options in terms of capacity and criteria” (Watters B, Toon J and Folk J Ed 2003, Sydney Planning or Politics P100). By the time this study was released in 1974, it was 6 years after the original SROP was release and questions hung over the pessimistic population and job forecasts and assumptions. The SROP was also criticised for its lack of integration with transport planning, due to the lack of data available for journey to work figures from the census. “More in tune with (flawed) predictions of high rates of economic and population growth, this plan offered strategic guidance in the British trend-friendly, structure plan rather than a statutory blueprint”. (Connell ed 2000, P128)
City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy (2005) The City of Cities of 2005 (see figure 10) recognises and reinforces the message and status that Sydney is “Australia’s only global city” (Metropolitan Strategy P3). As Bob Meyer noted, “never before has a strategy been under such media scrutiny and never has a strategy been so eagerly awaited” (New Planner June 2006, P12).
As the Sydney Region Outline Plan officially “expired” in 2000, it’s probably easy to understand why City of Cities is so discussed about; “Until now the Carr Government has resisted industry calls for a major new plan for Sydney, choosing instead to update the Sydney Region Outline plan, first drawn up 1968. But Mr Carr said the long-term blueprint would now be a major project.
“The new plan will be built, bottom up, over the next 12 months within sound guidelines. The first major outing of the powerful new Infrastructure and Planning Department, the plan will be shepherded by an impressive list of experts and embrace community ideas using models which have succeeded elsewhere” (Sydney Morning Herald 23rd April 2004)
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Figure 10: City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy 2005 (Source: www.metrostrategy.nsw.gov.au) Like the SROP, and as the title suggests, cities within a city were a major element of this metropolitan strategy, however, there is an attempt to have all the cities within a city play a part in being a “global Sydney” instead of being “isolated” and concentrated around the Sydney CBD. This is evident with the Sydney Orbital Motorway System and the North West and South West Rail Links providing the linkage and connection between major centres around Sydney as shown in figure 9 above and the regional city symbol and status given to places such as Parramatta, Penrith and Liverpool.
The North West and South West Growth Centres have been planned to accommodate future population and a Growth Centres Commission has been established to monitor land releases and the planning and supply of infrastructure.
The City of Cities is different in that there is a strong emphasis (and existence) of implementation and governance. This is evident with the planning reforms (such as
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standard LEP templates) currently taking place, other plans and policies related to the City of Cities (see below, the creation of the Growth Centres Commission and
the Cities Taskforce Project and the release of subregional strategies (see figure 11)
Figure 11 (left to right): Metropolitan Strategy progress reports and draft Sub-regional Strategies (Source: NSW Department of Planning 2007)
The progress reports (see figure 11) which shows how much progress has been made to date implementing the metropolitan strategy despite “Some urban planners and economists have proposed that an independent authority be created to monitor the strategy in case it loses direction under the influence of political expedience” (Sydney Morning Herald December 3 2005)
Ministerial Inquiry into Sustainable Transport (Parry Report) 2003 In December 2003, Thomas Parry released the final report into the sustainability of transport in New South Wales. After the interim report was released in August 2003, over 800 submissions were received and taken into account for the final report.
The main points of the report were:
o A large amount of taxpayer money goes to fund passenger transport services of one sort or another across NSW every year. This funding is equivalent to one-fifth of the NSW government annual health budget and about the same as the annual State police budget
o The current arrangements are not delivering the most appropriate transport solutions to best meet the needs of the broad community. Taxpayers are not getting the best possible value from the large amounts of money being spent
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each year on public transport. This has been a problem for many years, facing governments from all sides of politics
(Source: Ministerial Inquiry into Sustainable transport in New South Wales Final Report December 2003 Page vii)
Review of Bus Services in NSW (Unsworth Report) 2004 In February 2004, the Unsworth Report into the review of bus services in NSW was released and the key recommendations were the development of strategic bus corridors (see figure 12) and the establishment of contract regions with minimum service levels, standard ticket prices across Sydney and integrated network planning (see figure 13).
Figure 12: Sydney Strategic Bus Corridor Network (Source: NSW RTA 2007)
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Figure 13: An example of an integrated network (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport) Figure 13 illustrates how bus routes are developed, using the principles of integrated planning. Regional cities, major and town centres have been identified in the City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy. The Centres contain different concentration of services and hubs of the transport network. Ideally, a bus would travel back and forth from a local shopping and employment area, through residential areas, possibly via a hospital or educational institution before arriving at a major centre.
(Source: NSW Ministry of Transport: Fact Sheet – Integrated Planning)
NSW State Plan Whilst the City of Cities Metropolitan strategy is an important document planning and shaping Sydney for the next 25 years as did the SROP did back in 1968, the metropolitan strategy now falls under the NSW State Plan (see figure 14). The State plan is a document detailing the Government’s priorities and approaches to delivering services and infrastructure to the community.
Recently, and in the future, the NSW Department of Planning update reports will also mention and link to which aim is mentioned in the State Plan (e.g. E8, Improved Urban Environments)
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Figure 14: NSW State Plan and its relationship to other strategic documents (Source: NSW Government) It is interesting to note that one of the new priorities of the State Plan is to “improve the efficiency of the road network” whilst it also wants to “increase the modal share of public transport and locate jobs closer to home (30 minutes within people’s homes from a city or major centre by public transport). The State Plan also lists “improving the efficiency of the road network” as part of “improved urban environment”, whilst public transport is under “delivering better services”. This is an indicator that public transport is merely considered as a “service” in its own right with no connection to land use planning (improved urban environments), whereas improving the efficiency of the road network is.
State Infrastructure Strategy The State Infrastructure Strategy was launched in May 2006 and is a plan detailing the timing and funding for the provision of infrastructure in NSW. It links with the planning goals and objectives mentioned in the City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy. Under the State Infrastructure Strategy, $129 million was committed over 2006-07 to acquire land for the North West and South West Rail Link corridors. However, like the State Plan, it appears that the State Infrastructure Strategy is more focused on “road infrastructure” with more focus and attention to new and upgraded road
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projects (compared with the North West and South West Rail Link projects) such as $121 million for the upgrade of Old Windsor and Windsor Roads, and $37 million for various road upgrade projects around the Campbelltown and Ingleburn areas near the proposed South West Rail Link.
Urban Transport Statement 2006 The Urban Transport Statement was launched in November 2006 and is a detailed road and public transport infrastructure projects and initiatives plan to respond to Sydney’s Urban Travel and Transport Challenges. Figure 15 below details the number and complexity of issues that must be considered when undertaking detailed transport planning involving integration of transport modes.
Figure 15: Responding to Sydney’s Urban Travel and Transport Challenges (Source: NSW Urban Transport Statement 2006, p68) The Urban Transport Statement also recognises the need to integrated transport and land use planning; “For strategic planning to be effective, it is essential that it is based on accurate information and reliable projections on travel patterns and trip numbers, population growth, transport mode use, road network service levels and development trends. Strategic land use and transport planning must be linked to
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detailed land use and transport operational planning. (Source: NSW Urban Transport Statement 2006, p69)
Under the Urban Transport Statement, the North West Rail Link as part of the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program will be brought forward by 2 years to 2015 instead of 2017. Nearby to the proposed North West Rail Link, the Rail Clearways Program was expanded with the extension of the Richmond Rail Line duplication beyond Schofields to Riverstone by 2010 and Vineyard by 2012.
As part of the Urban Transport Statement implementation, the former Transport and Population Data Centre (TPDC) within the NSW Department of Planning was relocated and renamed as the Transport Data Centre (TDC) within the NSW Ministry of Transport. The population and demographics unit remain within the NSW Department of Planning.
These changes will support the Statement’s plan of establishing the Transport Cluster Group, which will have an advisory role to the newly established Transport Planning and Product Development Group within the Ministry and be a “clearing house” for all major Government Transport Initiatives. Whilst the newly established centre will assume the planning for a number of metropolitan transport planning initiatives, the Urban Transport Statement notes, that detailed project planning and delivery (of the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program) remains with agencies. This structure will need to be evaluated in the future to examine whether the overall aims and objectives of the State Plan and the Metropolitan Strategy will be met.
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2.4 Interstate and Overseas Examples of Integrated Land Use and Transport Planning
Melbourne, Victoria. In July 2006, the Victorian Government Public Transport Division of the Department of Infrastructure (DoI) released the Draft Public Transport Guidelines for Development. These guidelines fall under the “Meeting our Transport Challenges” which in turn, fall under the strategic directions of “Melbourne 2030” (the equivalent of Sydney’s City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy). These guidelines are similar to the draft State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) 66 Integrating Land Use and Transport released in 2001 by the then Department of Urban Affairs and Planning (DUAP) in conjunction with the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority and NSW Ministry of Transport.
Good public transport planning will produce better planning outcomes across Victoria. Public transport has a significant influence on the way our cities and regions grow and develop. Land use patterns will also have a significant influence on how well public transport services can be delivered and utilised.
The major focus of this document is on the public transport planning process that should be followed when land use developments or strategic planning proposals are being developed and considered. In addition, these guidelines provide broad design principles and advice on where to access relevant detailed public transport design and planning information. (Source: Draft Public Transport Guidelines for Land Use Development. Victoria Department of Infrastructure 2006)
Under the Planning and Environment Act (Victoria), the Director of Public Transport (DPT) is a referral authority under section 55 of the Act for major residential, retail, commercial, office and industrial developments. Therefore, authorities such as local councils must refer nominated applications to the DPT to help integrate land use and transport planning. The Public Transport Guidelines for development will assist the Minister in determining the conditions or refusals on planning permits.
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The following types of planning applications must be referred to the DPT for consideration:
o A residential development of more than 60 dwellings or lots
o A new retail premises of 4,000 or more square metres of leasable floor area
o An increase to the leasable floor area of an existing retail premises which is 20,000 or more square metres leasable floor area
o A commercial or office development of 10,000 or more square metres of leasable floor area
o An industrial subdivision of 20 or more lots
o A development which closes a road adjoining a public transport stop or which would use land within a closed road adjoining a public transport stop.
(Source: Department of Infrastructure, Victoria)
In undertaking the referral function, a broad range of matters will need to be considered. For example:
o The protection of options that will in the long term improve the functioning of the public transport system
o Avoiding creation of new bottlenecks/system constrictions
o Balancing the needs of all users including pedestrians, cyclists and private motor vehicle users
o Ensuring that the design of major residential, retail, industrial or commercial developments incorporate provision and future:
o Public Transport Facilities
o Pedestrian Linkages
o Facilities of non-motorised transport
(Source: Australian Planner, Vol 43, No.3, p7)
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Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), China The development of Hong Kong in the past has been dominated by the creation of “satellite” new towns in the New Territories with the objective of providing jobs and housing opportunities within the new towns and shifting population away from the crowded urban areas of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. Hong Kong has an extensive highway network connecting the New Territories, Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, and these highway networks formed the backbone of bus services as the dominant form of public transport. Apart from the Hong Kong Island Tramway network and the Kowloon Canton Railway Corporation (KCR) East Rail, transport in Hong Kong’s before the 1990’s was dominated by road (franchised buses) or water based (commuter ferries) transport.
By 1979, the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) opened in Hong Kong and was the answer in relieving overcrowding and demand for transport along the Nathan Road Corridor and Cross Harbour journeys between Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. The network has since expanded out beyond the Kowloon area out towards the new towns in the New Territories. Part of the success in the MTR in influencing land use is the exclusive rights to property development around the MTR stations to allow the company (MTR) make a return on investment and development around the stations.
The latest strategic document released by the HKSAR Government is the “Hong Kong Moving Ahead – A transport strategy for the future” which builds upon the earlier 1997 “Third Comprehensive Transport Study”. Both these studies recognise the need for an integrated approach. In order to reduce the need for travel, and thereby reducing the need for further infrastructure and the impact on the environment, an approach is required in which land use, transport, and the environment are considered in an integrated manner in both strategic and sub- regional strategies. (HKSAR Third Comprehensive Transport Study 1997)
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Since the opening of the KCR West Rail in 2003 and more recently, the Ma On Shan Rail Link in 2004, the HKSAR Government has recognised the value in rail transport providing a positive influence and impact on land use planning. There is more rail links being planned (see figure 16) with a view that heavy rail will eventually become the dominant form of public transport, with the franchised bus routes becoming “feeder routes” to the railway stations.
Figure 16: Ultimate preferred rail network in Hong Kong SAR (Source: HKSAR, The Second Railway Development Study 2000) As a result, Hong Kong’s heavy rail network has been seen as an attractive alternative to road based transport systems, and the potential for better integration with land use planning. The 2007 “Hong Kong Moving Ahead – A transport strategy for the future” gives “priority” to railway development is evidence of this occurring.
Integrating transport and land use planning can reduce the public's reliance on road- based transport, which in turn alleviates the demands put on the transport system and lessens the impact on the environment. Greater emphasis will be placed on the needs of pedestrians in transport and land use planning. Initiatives to be pursued include:
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o Siting intensive developments and employment centres within easy pedestrian reach of rail stations
o Pedestrianising selected roads, and providing grade-separated walkways, to reduce the number of short motorised trips and the conflict between pedestrians and vehicles. This will increase mobility, enhance road safety and improve local air quality
o Encouraging through the planning process non-polluting travel such as walking and cycling which will reduce the need for motorised travel at the local level
Despite these initiatives, increases in population and economic activity will place additional demands on existing and future transport systems, making it vitally important to provide new systems, and improve existing infrastructure, in a timely manner. This will be achieved by:
o Regularly reviewing the need, scope and timing for strategic highway projects to ensure they dovetail with current or future land use and population parameters
o Devising plans and environmental mitigation measures to cope with an expected significant increase in cross-boundary traffic
o Giving priority to railway development
(Source: HKSAR Hong Kong Moving Ahead – A transport strategy for the future 2007)
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3. Heavy Rail-Land Use Relationship
3.1 Introduction and Heavy Rail Service Planning Principles The relationship between heavy rail and land use is often difficult to define because its planning and operations are considered in its own “right of way” compared with light rail and buses which share space with many pedestrian oriented activities. (See photos 1 and 2)
Photo 1 (left): A Sydney Bus at Epping Station (Source: Author)
Photo 2 (right): CityRail Intercity “V” set arriving at Epping Railway Station (Source: Author) A bus passenger (photo 1) wishing to go to their place or activity for example would simply have to alight from the bus at street level and walk to their intended destination or activity (or reverse), the same could also be applied to light rail, which also runs at street level, with the added advantage of its own right of way and is less prone to traffic disruptions. A train passenger (photo 2) on the other hand would have to alight from the train carriage, travel up the concourse, through the ticket barrier and then continue to their destination or activity.
These two different transport modes bring together different circumstances when planning for them in conjunction with land use such as accessibility and operation of the transport mode (i.e. service scheduling). The rail planning processes adopted by the Ministry of Transport, RailCorp and TIDC are highly conventional and iterative (see figure 17, page 37).
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o The analysis of employment, population and land use trends and existing and future rail operational constraints.
o The prediction of future transport demands
o The development and testing of train plans to accommodate these demands and meet other defined service objectives
o The development and testing of alternative rail infrastructure, train operation and rolling stock responses
o The investigation of promising concepts in detail
o The preparation of overall strategies reflecting the finding of these investigations, and
o The implementation of projects to achieve the desired results
(Source: Long Term Strategic Plan for Rail 2001)
The report also notes that to meet the process, cooperation and liaison between all Government stakeholders is needed. However, having said that, this still appears to be “fragmented” due to each agency trying to achieve its “own objectives” (see section 2.3) and this could be interpreted as cooperation and liaison as existence by words only and not necessarily action.
The 2005 City of Cities Metropolitan Strategy identifies the North West and South West Rail Links as part of objective D1 in the strategy, which is to improve transport between Sydney’s centres. Whilst there is no specific mention of timeframe in the process, the Metropolitan Strategy recognises the value of heavy rail:
o Improve the level of rail services in Western Sydney
o Support Sydney’s growth in an increasingly global economy; and
o Provide access to jobs in the Macquarie Park to Airport Corridor
(Source: NSW Government City of Cities 2005, p165)
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Figure 17: Rail planning cycle process (Source: Long Term Strategic Plan for Rail. 2001)
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3.2 Heavy Rail Network Development in Sydney Sydney was very unique in that the rail infrastructure was in places like Richmond, Penrith, Newcastle and Wollongong well before Sydney’s population expanded into these areas to now where they are considered part of the “Greater Sydney” region. Sydney’s rail system was an example and pioneer to the world of what potential of the rail system and the benefits it brought to society, thanks to Dr. Bradfield’s vision for a modern urban transit system for Sydney.
"We have done very well out of Bradfield's legacy," says Dr Philip Laird, a transport expert from the University of Wollongong. "The trouble is that his legacy is so good - the recent and current generation of policymakers have let far too many st opportunities go." (Source: Sydney Morning Herald 21P P July 2007)
Sydney’s rail network over the years has been built up to be one of the world’s most advanced and complex, the electrification from the 1920’s and the introduction of double deck carriages from the 1960’s enabled Sydney to have a rail system that was envy of the world. The rail network reached into the outer areas of Sydney and electrification reaching areas such as Newcastle, Lithgow, Richmond, Port Kembla and Kiama enabled commuters the choice of living in areas not limited to the Sydney metro and by use of electric rail, journeys to town, work and other centres was convenient. However, by the late 1990’s organisation restructure and lack of investment has made rail travel very unattractive. This has been compounded by the negative media coverage, especially in the wake of the 1999 Glenbrook and 2003 Waterfall accidents.
Long Term Strategic Plan for Rail 2001 and Clearways Project In June 2001, Ron Christie released the long term strategic plan (Christie Report) for rail that highlighted the (then) current problems facing the network (see figure 18 next page) and recommendations to Government to create a sustainable rail system in the long term. It recognises that the current network was “rapidly approaching gridlock” and that major investment of funds and rail projects were needed to ensure the long term viability of the rail system. These “operational” problems will lead to difficulty in promoting heavy rail and land use integration. It’s no use having good land use planning to promote sustainable transport and land use integration if the current rail system is not performing well, let alone plans to add new lines to
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promote rail usage which aims to have a positive impact and influence on good land use planning integration.
Figure 18: Trouble spots in the rail network (Source: SMH Thursday 21st August 2003) An outcome of the long term strategic plan for rail was the creation of the “clearways project” The clearways project comprises of 15 key projects that will eventually “separate” the existing CityRail network into 5 distinct “independent clearways” to minimise “chain reaction” operational problems throughout the network. It is anticipated that this will lead to better reliability and be able to meet the growth in patronage, which will then in turn be a “platform” for promoting heavy rail as an
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attractive alternative mode of transport and to realise its potential for better integration with land use planning.
Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP) The Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program is a 50 kilometre expansion of the Sydney Rail Network-the largest since 1930-into the growing areas of the North and the South West (see figure 1). In the South West, it will extend services from Glenfield to Leppington (see photo 3) while in the North West, it will build upon the new Epping to Chatswood Rail Line to provide rail services to established areas like Castle Hill and growing areas such as Norwest and Rouse Hill (see photo 4). The MREP program will also provide for an additional CBD Harbour Rail Crossing to provide additional rail capacity. (Source: NSW Urban Transport Statement 2006).
Photo 3: Proposed location of SWRL stabling facility at Leppington (Source: Author)
Photo 4: Rouse Hill Town Centre Stage 1 (Source: Author)
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3.3 Heavy Rail and Land Use Connection A significant potential benefit of rail is its ability to support land use objectives. Rail transit stations often serve as a catalyst for higher-density, mixed use development, known as Transit Oriented Development (Litman 2004, p6). Whilst this may give the impression that rail transit is a “trigger” in influencing land use, it is also true that land use affects how transport systems are planned. If we look at the context of heavy rail, a well designed rail interchange for example will attract people to use it who will then (more than likely) use the rail service. The recently completed Parramatta Transport Interchange (see photo 5) is an example where its good design and layout has attracted more people, the transport service stops are well laid out and its permeability has improved greatly, particular the linkage with Westfield Parramatta.
Photo 5: Parramatta Transport Interchange (Source: Author) Rail systems are also perceived to increase land value all along their routes, compared with freeways, and concentrate commercial development (and compact housing) around stations. In this way rail systems attract more development, with nodes of life, commercial activity and jobs clustering around suburban stations (see photo 6), while freeways disperse development over wide areas usually only reachable by car (see photo 7). The ability of rail to increase land values is now being used as a way of paying for new rail systems in European and North American Cities, by encouraging joint public and private development of the rail system and associated commercial and residential projects. (Source: Newman and Kenworthy 1992)
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The rail link(s) (North West, South West and CBD Harbour Rail Links) have the potential to lead development across Sydney and support renewal in established areas. It would improve accessibility from the new Growth Centres to centres providing jobs and other services within the existing urban area. It would integrate with the existing rail network and improved bus networks, connecting centres across the city. (Source: NSW Government City of Cities 2005, p165)
Photo 6 (left): Rail based land use development patterns (Source: Author)
Photo 7 (right): Road based land use development patterns (Source: Author) Photos 6 and 7 illustrate the difference between road and rail based land use development impacts. The road based development is low density whereas the rail based development is high density.
3.4 Alternative Public Transport Modes for the North West and South West Transport Corridors th On September 25P P 2007 there was a newspaper headline entitled “Costa push to derail Hills link”. The article highlighted that the NSW treasury wanted the North th West Rail Link “reassessed” in favour “cheaper” bus rapid transitways. Then on 26P P September 2007, was the headline “Rail line will proceed: Watkins” reaffirming the Government’s position on the North West Rail Link. Politics and costs aside, this provides an opportunity to examine and analyse the difference between heavy rail and bus rapid transitways, both of which perform different roles and have different
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relationships and consequences with land use pattern impacts, and this is described in Table 1 below using a basic “bus” and “rail” comparison.
Bus Rail
Flexibility. Bus routes can change and Greater demand. Rail tends to attract more expand when needed. For example, routes discretionary riders than buses can change if a roadway is closed, or if Greater comfort, including larger seats destinations or demand changes. with more legroom, more space per Requires no special facilities. Buses can passenger, and smoother and quieter ride. use existing roadways, and general traffic More voter support for rail than bus lanes can be converted into a busway. improvements. More suitable for dispersed land use, and Greater maximum capacity. Rail requires so can serve a greater rider catchment area. less space and is more cost effective on Several routes can converge onto one high volume routes. busway, reducing the need for transfers. Greater travel speed and reliability, where For example buses that start at several rail transit is grade separated. suburban communities can all use a busway to a city centre. More positive land use impacts. Rail tends to be a catalyst for more accessible Lower capital costs. development patterns. Is used by more people who are transit Increased property values near transit dependent, so bus service quality stations. improvements provide greater equity benefits. Less air and noise pollution, particularly when electric powered. Rail stations tend to be more pleasant than bus stations, so rail is more appropriate where many transit vehicles congregate.
Table 1: Comparison of Bus and Rail Mode (Source: Litman 2004) Whilst Litman made the point of rather than debating whether or not rail is superior to bus, it is generally better to consider which is more appropriate in a particular
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situation. If we consider this particular situation of the North West Rail Link corridor (and the initial reasons for having a heavy rail link), a “bus route” running along the North West Rail Link Corridor to the City would make it one of Sydney’s longest bus routes. This option totally goes against the original strategic aims, goals and objectives of the State Plan and the Metropolitan Strategy.
In addition, the existing bus services running along the North West corridor to the CBD is at “near capacity” as indicated by Westbus Chief Executive Owen Eckford where it has added 16 buses to the services it runs along the M2 Motorway into the city and North Sydney after a steep rise in passenger numbers. The boost was its latest attempt to meet the needs of 8000 to 10,000 workers travelling by bus to the office every day from suburbs in the North West. The demand is so great that even the “bendy” (articulated) bus is not big enough, despite having a capacity of 63 th seated passengers. (Source: Sydney Morning Herald, 16P P March 2007)
th Despite the 25P P September article floating the idea of (by “private investors”) initially building an underground tollway, with the intention of converting it later to rail, there is no guarantee that it will happen, it could end up being a normal toll road, which “guarantees income” like the other toll roads in Sydney which investors have a stake in. The second scenario, if this underground tollway were to go ahead and not be converted to heavy rail use, it could end up being like the half built Dombarton-Maldon Line located south of Sydney, a waste of resources and taxpayers money (see photo 8).
Photo 8: Half completed Dombarton-Maldon Line (source: NSWrail.net)
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The second issue with the bus service replacing the proposed North West Rail Link, is where are all these “additional” buses (including other CBD inbound buses from other parts of Sydney) going to be parked for unloading in the AM peak and loading in the PM peak. It appears (see photo 9) that the existing Wynyard Bus station at York St (near the Harbour Bridge) is at “near capacity” in the AM peak and that it would be likely there wouldn’t be any more capacity for extra inbound bus services. The same could be said for the PM peak, with the buses leaving Sydney CBD. Should this eventuate, one could question whether there’s any difference at all in driving, after all buses and cars travel on the “same road”.
Photo 9: Existing Wynyard York St Bus Terminus in AM peak weekday (Source: Author) Whilst the South West Rail Link Corridor is “less complex” than the North West because the area is not “built up” and developed (the concept plan having recently being approved by the Minister for Planning), there would also be parallels with the North West should the South West Rail Link be replaced by a bus service. However, in this circumstance/scenario there are two differences compared with the North West. Firstly there is an existing rail line at Glenfield (near the proposed South West Rail Link) which connects to the City via the East Hills line and the South Western M5 Motorway which offers cashback to privately registered vehicles whereas the M2 Motorway does not. Nonetheless, one would hope that by the time the South West Rail Link is built, those “new” residents can look forward and early establish their travel habits by using the new rail link rather than drive and add to the already peak hour congested M5 Motorway and M5 East Freeway.
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Reason for using car instead of public transport to travel to work in NW and SW area
7% 1% 20% Bus/train unavailable/inaccessible 8% Problems with public transport Vehicle faster 6% Provided by company/business Need vehicle for work Need vehicle for other trips 6% 13% Can make trip whenever I like No timetable/waiting constraints 6% Arrives closer to destination More comfortable 4% Carpooling arrangements 5% Other specify 5% 19%
Figure 19: Reason for using car instead of Public Transport to work in North West and South West area (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Parking problems/costs Reason for using public transport to travel to work in NW and SW area Don't have car
Cheaper
Car used by someone else 10% 1% 18% Faster 2% 8% Arrives closer to destination 6% Less stressful 7% Live/work close to public transport
14% Enjoy time to read/relax 12% Environmental reasons 5% 4% 13% Employer assists with public transport costs Other specify
Figure 20: Reason for using Public Transport instead of car to work in North West and South West area (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) Figures 19 and 20 show the combined North West and South West Study area of the reasons why some people use cars and others use public transport to travel to work. Due to the data being provided as a combined total for both areas, it was not possible to separate them. Figure 19 had a total response of 197,096 respondents whilst figure 20 had a total of 40,087 respondents. It is interesting to note in figure 20 that 18% of the respondents (being the largest representative total) have cited parking problems and costs for not using a car, surprising given these areas are thought to have ample parking, whilst 13% have cited faster public transport. Appendix A has a full breakdown of the household and number of cars owned in each of the travel zones.
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4. North West Land Use and Transport Corridor Planning Analysis
4.1 Introduction This chapter will focus on analysing the planning process for the North West Rail Link and undertake a strategic land use and transport analysis of the North West Rail Link corridor using the Transport Data Centre Household Travel Survey to understand the travel patterns and demands in this corridor. As mentioned earlier, the analysis of the North West Rail Link corridor will be limited to the “Stage 1” (Epping to Hills Centre) and “Stage 2” (Hills Centre to Rouse Hill) of the link only to establish a picture and understand how this rail link is planned in an existing environment context. The proposed North West Rail link is shown in Figure 21 below.
Figure 21: North West Rail Link Route Overview (Source: TIDC NWRL Preferred project report by GHD May 2007)
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4.2 North West Rail Link Project Description The North West Rail Link (NWRL) is a proposed 22 km passenger heavy rail line running from Epping to Rouse Hill via Castle Hill. It includes six new stations; Franklin Road, Castle Hill, Hills Centre, Norwest, Burns Road, and Rouse Hill (with an interim train stabling facility. As part of the NSW Government Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program, (MREP), the proposed NWRL will provide links between new employment and growth areas within Sydney.
The NWRL is proposed to be built in two stages. The first stage between Epping and Hills Centre is proposed to be operational by 2015, whilst the second stage between Hills Centre and Rouse Hill is expected to be operational by 2017.
(Source: Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation NWRL Planning Update No. 3 June 2007)
4.3 Existing Public Transport Services Within the North West Rail Link Corridor as indicated in Figure 21, CityRail runs train services on the Western and Blue Mountains line (along the bottom left of Figure 21) and the Northern and Central Coast/Newcastle line (to the right of Figure 21). Parramatta, Blacktown are the nearest rail stations serving travellers in the NWRL corridor area. Strictly speaking though, in the context of this study, it would be fair to say that the area around the NWRL Corridor is not served by rail.
The majority of buses serving the study area are run by Hillsbus and Busways Blacktown. These routes are illustrated in Figure 22 on the next page. The study area is known as “Contract Region 4” and encompasses the suburbs of Blacktown, Rouse Hill, Castle Hill, Dural and Parramatta. Strategic bus corridors 3, 6, 5 and 40 run through the corridor as indicated on Figure 12, page 25.
In the absence of a heavy rail service in the study area, Figure 22 on the next page indicates a comprehensive bus route network serving and linking many centres in the North West. However, should travellers wish to travel to other parts of Sydney, a connection to the rail service at Parramatta, Blacktown or the Richmond Line may be necessary (especially in off peak and on weekends).
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Figure 22: Contract region 4 (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport)
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4.4 North West Transitway In March 2007, the first stage of the North West Transitway (T-way) opened between Rouse Hill and Parramatta railway station. The second stage between rd Blacktown and Parklea is due to open on Saturday 3P P November 2007 (see Figure 23).
Figure 23: North West T-way network (Source: www.t-way.nsw.gov.auHTU )UTH
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The North West T-way is a dedicated daily high frequency service that runs parallel on a dedicated busway to Old Windsor Road. The Blacktown section runs parallel to Sunnyholt Road. The T-way routes (and journey time each direction) are as follows:
o T61: Blacktown and Parramatta (35 mins)
o T62: North Kellyville and Parramatta (42 mins)
o T63: Kellyville Ridge and Parramatta (45 mins)
o T64: Rouse Hill and Parramatta (via Beaumont Hills) (60 mins)
o T65: Rouse Hill and Parramatta. (38 mins)
During September on two weekday morning peaks, a passenger count of the alighting passengers from the T-way heading into Parramatta rail station (Western Concourse) was conducted at the Parramatta Transport Interchange stand A1 (see Figure 24). This assumes that all of the passengers counted in the survey who walked into Parramatta Station will be catching a train to the city. Because of the departing T-way services at stand B4, it was not possible to conduct a detailed count and observation of passengers moving from the rail station exits to stand B4. So it is also assumed, for the purposes of this exercise, that the “same” passengers in the morning count will also make the return trip in the afternoon peak after catching the rail service from the City. These counts (Figures 25 and 26) are detailed on the next page.
Figure 24: Parramatta Transport Interchange (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport)
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North West T-way passengers heading into Parramatta Station (Wednedsay 12th September 2007)
35 32 30
25
21 21 20 18 18 16 15 15 15
12
No. of passengers 11 10 9 8 7 7 6 5
0
07:02:00 07:21:00 07:30:00 07:35:00 07:40:00 08:00:00 08:07:00 08:07:00 08:09:00 08:10:00 08:26:00 08:26:00 08:40:00 08:40:00 08:50:00 T65 T62 T65 T64 T63 T65 T62 T63 T61 T64 T65 T61 T64 T62 T62 T way route & arrival time
Figure 25: North West T-way passenger count heading into Parramatta Station on th Wednesday 12P P September 2007 (Source: Author)
North West T-way passengers heading into Parramatta Station (Thursday 13th September 2007)
30
27 27 25 25
22 21 20 19 18 17 15 15 15 14 12 12 12 11 10 10 No. of passengers No. 9 8
5 55
2 0
06:59:00 07:00:00 07:06:00 07:22:00 07:23:00 07:25:00 07:33:00 07:33:00 07:46:00 08:02:00 08:02:00 08:02:00 08:04:00 08:10:00 08:27:00 08:27:00 08:27:00 08:40:00 08:45:00 08:47:00 08:57:00 T65 T63 T65 T61 T65 T62 T63 T64 T65 T61 T62 T63 T65 T64 T61 T65 T62 T63 T64 T65 T62 T w ay route & arrival time
Figure 26: North West T-way passenger count heading into Parramatta Station on th Thursday 13P P September 2007 (Source: Author)
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Figure 25 indicates the total number of passengers (216 in total) that arrived at Parramatta Transport Interchange heading into the rail station concourse between 7:00am and 9:00am on Wednesday to alight from the T-way, with a total arrival of 15 services. Figure 26 indicates the total number of passengers (306 in total) that arrived at Parramatta Transport Interchange heading into the rail station concourse between 7:00am and 9:00am on Thursday to alight from the T-way, with a total arrival of 21 services, 7 services more than Wednesday.
Thursday appears to be a busier day than Wednesday with more services and passengers arriving within the same time period compared with Wednesdays. Both days indicate that the majority of passengers arrive between 7:30am and 8:30pm. the route T65 appears to be very popular with passengers judging by the arrivals as well as having the fastest trip route of all T-way routes at 38 mins. During both days of the survey, it was also observed that there were 8 cars parked at the Burns Road Park and Ride (5% usage, see photo 10) and 79 cars parked at Riley Park and Ride (59% usage)
Photo 10: Park and Ride Facility at Burns Road T-way Station (Source: Author) As the North West T-way has only been in operation for a few months, this is a good start and will continue to build up as the New Rouse Hill Town Centre fully opens soon. The Liverpool to Parramatta Transitway (route T80) in the South West also had a low patronage in the beginning, but on the day of this survey at Parramatta station, it was observed that every T80 service that arrived was at “crush capacity” and the North West T-way also has the potential to achieve similar patterns. The North West T-way will play a “complimentary” role when the NWRL is completed and offer the North West a comprehensive and efficient public transport option which will have a positive influence on future land use planning.
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4.5 Planning analysis of the North West Rail Link This chapter will focus on the planning process of North West Rail Link (NWRL) and how it will integrate with land use planning. The following documents prepared in planning for the NWRL will be reviewed and analysed in this chapter:
o GHD, November 2006. North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan. Prepared for Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation
o GHD, May 2007. North West Rail Link: Preferred Project Report. Prepared for Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation
The first report is the initial concept plan and environmental assessment, which is then put on exhibition for comment whilst the second report is in response to the submissions and issues raised by stakeholders in the first report.
North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan The NWRL is a Part 3A Project under the NSW Environmental Planning and Assessment (EP&A) Act 1979. Part 3A of the EP&A Act establishes an assessment and approval regime for development that is declared to be a Part 3A project by either a State Environmental Planning Policy or Ministerial Order (section 75B).
Section 75B states:
o This Part applies to the carrying out of development that is declared under this section to be a project to which this Part applies:
o by a State Environmental Planning Policy, or
o by order of the Minister published in the Gazette
(Source: NSW Legislation, EP&A Act 1979)
The project was declared to be a project to which Part 3A applies by an order made by the Minister on 7 April 2006. Division 3 of Part 3A provides a process for the environmental assessment and approval of concept plans for projects where the Minister has authorised or required a proponent to submit a concept plan under section 75M of the EP&A Act. On 3 July 2006 the Minister authorised TIDC to prepare this concept plan for the project.
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Under s75M(2), a concept plan is to:
o outline the scope of the project and any development options, and
o set out any proposal for the staged implementation of the project, and
o contain any other matter required by the Director General.
(Source: NSW Legislation, EP&A Act 1979)
The concept plan assessment and approval process enables a proponent to obtain approval for the key parameters of a major, complex project whilst allowing necessary flexibility to undertake more detailed design and assessment of the specific components of the project. This would enable matters such as the suitability of a site/route and environmental issues to be resolved early in the project planning process.
The concept plan approval process is particularly relevant to large scale, long-term and complex infrastructure projects (such as the project) for which conceptual strategic planning work has already been undertaken. A concept plan approval would ensure better integration of land use and transport planning in the local government areas affected by the project. Importantly, submission of a concept plan would also enable further community involvement in the strategic planning phase and in the refinement of the project.
(Source: GHD, November 2006. North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan p 2.8)
The Environmental Assessment and Concept plan goes into a lot of detail addressing a wide range of social, economic and environmental issues considering a project of this scale in an existing urban area. The draft Statement of Commitments details 40 points for further consideration in accordance with section 75F(6) of the EP&A Act.
Land Use Impacts and Planning The project has the potential to act as a catalyst for residential and commercial development, with an increase in land use intensity, in the vicinity of the six new station sites. In particular, there is the potential for development with a transit oriented focus in the vicinity of Franklin Road, Burns Road and Rouse Hill Stations. Burns Road and Rouse Hill Stations are located within new release areas (the
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Balmoral Road Release Area and the Rouse Hill Regional Centre) and the presence of a station has already been taken into account in the planning and development of these areas. Existing land uses within the vicinity of the other stations would be able to take advantage of the increased access that the stations provide. Intensification of existing land uses around Castle Hill, Hills Centre and Norwest Stations may also occur. (Source: GHD, November 2006. North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan, p viii)
Whilst the project is recognised for having the potential to integrate with land use planning, the actual process of how to achieve it is not explained in great detail because the scope of the report is to address the environmental impacts during construction and to present a concept plan for approval under part 3A of the EP&A Act. Another issue with the NWRL link is that it’s built in a developed area and land use rezoning or increased development density changes (i.e. compatible “new” and existing” developments located in same precinct) will occur as a result of the NWRL been built. Whilst part 3A “reduces red tape” and allows for a streamlined planning approval process, it is too focused and concentrated on “getting it approved” by the Minister for Planning (and not the Minister for Transport as well for example) without any real opportunity for all the stakeholders to get involved.
Indeed part 3A has not been without its controversies with developers trying to bypass local authorities to get “direct” approval from the Minister and also the powers granted to him to “call in” any developments. It appears also, from an examination of this Environmental Assessment, that an opportunity is missed to “practice” integrated land use and transport planning, stakeholders merely just respond to what is presented from an environmental assessment perspective.
North West Rail Link Preferred Project Report The preferred project report is a response from the Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation to the submissions it has received from the exhibition of the Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan in accordance with section 75H(6) of the EP&A Act 1979. Whilst the NWRL has undergone some design modifications to address some issues raised in the submission, there is still a lack of a “plan forward” to a process of how to integrated transport and land use planning. This is
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evident with some of the issues raised by stakeholders detailed below with regard to land use planning and the impacts on land during construction.
Baulkham Hills Shire Council o Opposition to any part of the rail line above ground
o Consideration of a rail station at Samantha Riley Drive
o Development limitations and development potential in the vicinity of Franklin Road Station
RailCorp o Integration of station precincts with surrounding land uses
Blacktown City Council o Integration of the stabling facility with future surrounding land uses
NSW Ministry of Transport o Integration of any future extension with planning for the North West Growth Centre
Hornsby Shire Council o Significant land use implications in the vicinity of Franklin Road Station (consistency with the relevant Development Control Plan and commercial centres hierarchy to be investigated)
Landcom o Deliver the project faster and stages 1 and 2 concurrently
o Consult with Landcom and other key stakeholders to integrate the design of Rouse Hill Station
o Commence detailed project approvals for the Rouse Hill Station to coincide with other development
o Development adjacent to or above the rail tunnel
(Source: Adapted from GHD, May 2007. North West Rail Link: Preferred Project Report. Table A1)
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In addressing each of the concerns, the report directs the reader to the relevant section where it addresses the issue. In some cases, the actual section does not exist in the report (e.g. 5.8.5), and there isn’t any evidence of a “concrete proposal” to seriously address the concerns, only what measures are implemented to address the “environmental impacts”.
Staged Delivery of NWRL The staged delivery of the NWRL was also a concern raised as it will impact on the overall land use planning timeframe. Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (WSROC) notes that because the NWRL is being delivered in two stages that “A major disadvantage of stopping the construction at the Hills Centre Station for the first stage is the lost opportunity to connect with the new Rouse Hill Regional Centre (currently under construction) and the Norwest Business Park which currently employs some 25,000 people (with Woolworths alone employing 7,000 people) with an anticipated total employment of 35,000 people by 2010” (Source: WSROC Response to TIDC NWRL Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan, February 2007).
4.6 Land Use and Transport Analysis The objective of this chapter is to undertake a strategic land use and transport analysis of the North West Rail Link corridor and present the corridor’s existing and forecasted travel and land use characteristics. This is carried out by an analysis of the Household Travel Survey data sets and Small Area and Employment Forecasts supplied by the NSW Ministry of Transport, Transport Data Centre (TDC). The full details of the Household Characteristics, Population and Employment Forecast Data of the North West Rail Link Corridor (together with the South West Rail Link Corridor) are in Appendix A.
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Figure 27: North West Rail Link Study Area (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) Figure 27 above represents the entire North West Rail Link corridor and surrounding areas; the orange line represents the North West Rail Link whilst the blue line represents the North West Transitway (discussed earlier). Each of the three digit numbers shown in Figure 27 represent a “travel zone” and hold data such as purpose and mode of trips within that particular travel zone. The study area falls mainly within the Baulkham Hills Council area with part of the proposed North West Rail Link in Hornsby Council area.
In developing the data set analysis, only travel zones “immediate” to the North West Rail Link were used for this analysis, so not all the zones shown above were used for this exercise, either because they are not near the North West Rail Link or are already close to both the existing Western and Northern Lines of the CityRail network. The suburbs listed in figure 27 are for travel zone data classification purposes only and does not necessarily match the actual suburb name in the street directory (e.g. West Pennant Hills (east)).
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The zones selected out of Figure 27 are:
TZ TDC Data Coverage Suburbs (refer to (North West Rail Link) fig. 27) Baulkham Hills 454 Baulkham Hills East 621 Baulkham Hills Southwest 455 Baulkham Hills West 622 Beaumont Hills 624 Bella Vista 769 Box Hill 627 Castle Hill 755 Castle Hill North 620 Castle Hill Showground 753
Castle Hill South 756 Castle Hill West 453 Cherrybrook 470 Glenhaven 690 Glenhaven East 691 Glenwood 748 Kellyville 456 Kellyville North 752 Kellyville Ridge 747 Kellyville South 623 Norwest Business Park 754 Rouse Hill 750 Rouse Hill South 751 Rouse Hill West 752 West Pennant Hills (east) 757 West Pennant Hills (west) 452
Table 2: Selected Travel Zones for the data analysis: (Source: adapted from data set provided by NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Land Use analysis Population and employment forecasts at travel zone level are estimated using forecasting models that are managed by the TDC. These forecasts are provisional small area estimates which are normally used as inputs in other modelling processes such as in Sydney Strategic Travel Model. It should be differentiated from the official Population Projections produced at a broader geographical level which are sectioned by the NSW Government. (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, TDC 2007)
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The land use analysis is based on data from TDC’s Small Area Population and Employment Forecasts. An analysis of the study area’s population and employment characteristics was undertaken using the most recent 2006 data to present the existing situation, and using the forecasted year of 2031 to present the future situation for the corridor. The 2031 forecast year was selected because over the next 25 years initiatives such as the Sydney Metropolitan Strategy and the North West Rail Link will have been implemented.
Population
North West Study Area Population Forecast
250,000 221,977 212,764 203,465 190,338 200,000 175,382 161,119
150,000
100,000 No. of jobs
50,000
0 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031 Year
Population forecast
Figure 28: North West Study Area Population Forecast (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) The land use analysis revealed that the study area accommodates a population of 161,119 people in the year 2006, forecasted to grow to 221,977 in the year 2031. The study area’s majority of existing population are located in Baulkham Hills, Castle Hill and West Pennant Hills. The bulk of the study area’s future population growth is accommodated in Kellyville, Rouse Hill and Glenhaven; these areas are near the future North West Growth Centre and are an indicator of population shifting further out. (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, TDC 2007)
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Employment
North West Study Area Employment Forecast
120,000 97,589 99,575 100,000 94,073 90,019 78,680 80,000 61,776 60,000
No. of jobs No. 40,000
20,000
0 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031 Year
Employment Forecast
Figure 29: North West Study Area Employment Forecast (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) The land use analysis revealed that the study area accommodates an employment forecast of 61,776 jobs in the year 2006, forecasted to grow to 99,575 jobs in the year 2031. There is a notable “sharp growth” between 2006 and 2016. The majority of the employment growth is accommodated in the Norwest Business Park with around 35,000 jobs in the year 2031, more than double the 2006 forecast of around 16,000 jobs. Rouse Hill is the next suburb in the study area with the biggest jobs growth, with 8,000 jobs forecast for the year 2031, up from 1,388 from the year 2006. (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, TDC 2007). These results indicate that the North West Rail Link’s two stations of Rouse Hill and Norwest Business Park will be a major trip generator for people working in the area.
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Transport Analysis
Total trips into and out of NWRL Corridor by mode
80,000
70,000
60,000
Bus-government 50,000 Bus-private Other 40,000 Tr ain Vehicle Driver Vehicle Passenger 30,000 Wal k
20,000
10 , 0 0 0
0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in
Trip Mode
Figure 30: Total no. of trips into and out of NWRL Corridor by mode (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Total trips into and out of NWRL corridor by purpose
50,000
45,000
40,000 Commute 35,000 Education/chilcare Home 30,000 Other 25,000 Personal business Serve passenger No. oftrips 20,000 Shopping Social/recreation 15,000 Work related business 10,000
5,000
0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in Trip purpose
Figure 31: Total no. of trips into and out of NWRL Corridor by purpose (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
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Total trips into and out between NWRL and other parts of Sydney
60,000 Eastern Suburbs Forest District 50,000 Greater Western Sydney Hills District 40,000 Inner Wes t North Shore (Low er) 30,000 North Shore (Upper) North Western No. of trips 20,000 Northern Beaches Other (outside Sydney)
10,000 South Eastern Sydney South Western Sydney Southern Sydney 0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in St George Area Sydney CBD Other parts of Sydney
Figure 32: Total no. of trips between NWRL Corridor and other parts of Sydney (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) Figures 30 to 32 show the total trips into and out of the NWRL corridor by mode purpose and between the NWRL corridors and other parts of Sydney. Whilst figure 30 “confirms” the private vehicle as the dominant form of transport into and out of the area, this unsustainable trend could continue if the NWRL were not to be built. The high number of trips into and out of the NWRL corridor for “home” purpose indicates that trips into and out of the area is primarily for commuting purposes. If the land uses mix changes, this trend will also change. The most surprising thing figure 32 reveals is that a high number of trips is between the NWRL corridor and Greater Western Sydney. This is a possible indicator that people are working in jobs primarily in Greater Western Sydney rather than the traditional Sydney CBD. An implication for the NWRL is whether this will balance and spread the trips to other parts of Sydney, particularly for work commuting.
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4.7 Future Influences on the Corridor
Burns Road and Balmoral Road future release area The Balmoral Road Release Area is located in the Baulkham Hills LGA in the vicinity of Balmoral Road and Burns Road. It was originally identified as an urban release area under the State Government’s Urban Development Program in 1998.
The Balmoral Road Local Environmental Plan was gazetted on 13 April 2006. This plan rezoned rural land to allow development of the release area. The release area, which has an area of approximately 500 hectares, adjoins the suburbs of Kellyville, Bella Vista and Castle Hill.
It is proposed to accommodate approximately 15,000 people and 6,000 dwellings. Other proposed land uses include a transit interchange/transitway stop in the vicinity of the proposed Burns Road Station, commercial and employment development, public services and facilities such as open space and schools.
The part of the land release area that is partially affected by the project has been identified and zoned as land for railway purposes by the Balmoral Road Local Environmental Plan.
(Source: GHD, November 2006. North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan, p3.24-3.25)
Other significant impacts on the NWRL will be the future development of the North West Growth Centre and the Rouse Hill Town Centre full opening next year. These changes, because of the NWRL link corridor, will produce a highly transit oriented development along the North West Corridor. One possible interim impact in the area may be the future third lane addition of the M2 motorway. As it is likely that this will occur before the opening of the NWRL, this could be a factor in people’s travel mode choice preference as the extra capacity could possibly encourage more car drivers.
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5. South West Land Use and Transport Corridor Planning Analysis
5.1 Introduction This chapter will focus on analysing the planning process for the South West Rail Link and undertake a strategic land use and transport analysis of the South West Rail Link corridor using the Transport Data Centre Household Travel Survey to understand the travel patterns and demands in this corridor. The proposed South West Rail link is shown in figure 33 below.
Figure 33: South West Rail Link Route Overview (Source: TIDC SWRL Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan by PB May 2007)
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5.2 South West Rail Link Project Description The South West Rail Link (SWRL) is a proposed 13 kilometre twin track passenger rail line from Glenfield to Leppington via Edmondson Park (South West Growth Centre, refer to Figure 34). It includes two new stations at Edmondson Park and Leppington, an upgrade to Glenfield Station and a new train stabling (train parking) facility west of Leppington.
(Source: Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation SWRL Planning Update No. 3 May 2007)
Figure 34: South West Growth Centre Structure Plan. (Source: NSW Department of Planning 2005. Managing Sydney’s Growth Centres)
5.3 Existing Public Transport Services Within the South West Rail Link Corridor as indicated in Figure 33, CityRail runs train services to Campbelltown via Granville and East Hills Line. Glenfield and Macquarie Fields are the nearest rail stations serving travellers in the SWRL corridor area. The majority of buses serving the study area are run by Busabout and Interline; these routes are illustrated in figure 34 on the next page. The study area is known as “Contract Region 2” and encompasses the suburbs of Liverpool, Glenfield, Ingleburn, Bringelly and Hoxton Park. Strategic bus corridor 31 runs near the SWRL corridor as indicated on Figure 12, page 25.
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Figure 35: Contract region 2 (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport)
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5.4 Planning analysis of the South West Rail Link This chapter will focus on the planning process of South West Rail Link (SWRL) and how it will integrate with land use planning. The following documents prepared in planning for the SWRL will be reviewed and analysed in this chapter:
o Parsons Brinckerhoff, November 2006. South West Rail Link. Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment. For Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation
o Parsons Brinckerhoff, May 2007. South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment. Submissions Report For Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation
The first report is the initial concept plan and environmental assessment, which is then put out onto exhibition for comment whilst the second report is in response to the submissions and issues raised by stakeholders in the first report.
South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment The NSW Minister for Transport and the voting shareholders of TIDC have granted consent under Section 18(1) of the Transport Administration Act 1988 for TIDC to undertake preparatory work required for the Metropolitan Rail Expansion Program (MREP), which includes the SWRL.
Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 establishes an assessment and approval regime for major infrastructure projects. It applies to development that is declared to be a Part 3A project by either a state environmental planning policy or a Ministerial Order published in the Government Gazette (under Section 75B of the Act). The SWRL was declared to be a project to which Part 3A applies by an order made by the Minister on 9 April 2006 pursuant to Section 75B.
(Source: Parsons Brinckerhoff, November 2006. South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment p30)
Compared with the NWRL, the SWRL planning process is assisted by the Growth Centres Commission which co-ordinates the land releases and the provision of infrastructure, this ensures that when people move in, there will be infrastructure ready. The commission works closely with the relevant Local Council to prepare
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detailed plans for land use. With this process in mind, the provision of the SWRL will allow certainty in planning for precincts around it. A new State Environmental Planning Policy (SEPP) Sydney Region Growth Centre 2006 was gazetted in July 2006 which sets out the statutory plans and processes that will apply in the North West and South West Growth Centres. Central to the SEPP is the coordination of sustainable land release for urban development within each growth centre.
Land Use Impacts and Planning As the SWRL is a new rail link to be built in a future developing area, the main issue with the land use impacts (currently) is the reservation and acquisition of land from private owners. When the SWRL is built, the following land use changes around the two proposed stations are expected to occur:
Edmondson Park
o a town centre, comprising 25,000 square metres of retail floor space, including two supermarkets
o 7,333 dwellings
o highway retail uses along part of the southern side of Camden Valley Way
o six local villages, including two villages on Camden Valley Way, that will include local
o retail uses (e.g. convenience stores and cafes), high density residential development, schools, community facilities and neighbourhood parks
o four schools, comprising a high school in the town centre and primary schools at three of the local villages
o a hierarchy of public open space, including conservation areas (154 hectares), riparian parks, district parks and neighbourhood active and passive recreation areas.
(Source: Parsons Brinckerhoff, November 2006. South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment p105)
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Leppington
The South West Growth Centre Structure Plan divides the Leppington local area into three development precincts: Leppington North, Leppington and East Leppington. The proposed Leppington Station is located in the Leppington North precinct. The SWRL corridor also crosses into the northern edge of the Leppington precinct west of the Station. The Leppington precinct was not among the first precincts identified for development by the Growth Centres Commission. Planning for the Leppington precinct has not progressed beyond the level of detail contained in the South West Structure Plan.
(Source: Parsons Brinckerhoff, November 2006. South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment p108)
South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment Submissions Report The submissions report is a response from the Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation to the submissions it has received from the exhibition of the Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment in accordance with section 75H(6) of the EP&A Act 1979.
The report notes that many of the issues raised matters of detail that cannot be fully addressed at the Concept Plan level. These issues have been noted and would be addressed as part of further design development and environmental assessment planned for the next stage. The main issues were
o property impacts (from valuation/acquisition process)
o Existing parking at Glenfield station
o Land use impacts, during construction and future
o Operation of the rail link in the future
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5.5 Land Use and Transport Analysis The objective of this chapter is to undertake a strategic land use and transport analysis of the South West Rail Link corridor and present the corridor’s existing and forecasted travel and land use characteristics. This is carried out by an analysis of the Household Travel Survey data sets and Small Area and Employment Forecasts supplied by the NSW Ministry of Transport, Transport Data Centre (TDC). The full details of the Household Characteristics, Population and Employment Forecast Data of the South West Rail Link Corridor (together with the North West Rail Link Corridor) are in Appendix A.
Figure 36: South West Rail Link Study Area (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) Figure 36 above represents the entire South West Rail Link corridor and surrounding areas; the orange line represents the South West Rail Link (indicative). Each of the three digit numbers shown in Figure 36 represent a “travel zone” and hold data such as purpose and mode of trips within that particular travel zone. The study area falls mainly within the Liverpool Council area with part of the proposed South West Rail Link in Campbelltown Council area.
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TDC Data Coverage Suburbs TZ (refer to fig. (South West Rail Link) 36) Austral 671 Edmondson Park 366
Hoxton Park 365 Hoxton West 583 Ingleburn 379 Leppington 666 Macquarie Links 601 Prestons 670 Varroville 599
Table 3: Selected Travel Zones for the data analysis: (Source: adapted from data set provided by NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) Table 3 above lists the selected travel zones for the analysis
Land Use analysis
South West Study Area Population Forecast
120,000
100,000 99,315 88,873 80,000 77,270 69,809 60,000 53,253 Population 40,000 41,336
20,000
0 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031 Year
population forecast Figure 37: South West Study Area Population Forecast (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) The land use analysis revealed that the study area accommodates a population of 41,336 people in the year 2006, forecasted to grow to 99,315 in the year 2031. The majority of the existing population is in Hoxton Park with 16,475 people in 2006, but forecast to grow only to 21,092 by the year 2031. By contrast the bulk of the study area’s future population growth is accommodated in Edmondson Park and Leppington, their population is expected to grow from 2,016 in 2006 to 15,026 in 2031 and 747 in 2006 to 9,123 in 2031 respectively. (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, TDC 2007)
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page A-73
South West Study Area Employment Forecast
30,000 27,363 24,196 25,000 21,650 20,467 20,000 18,376 15,991 15,000
No. of jobs 10,000
5,000
- 2006 2011 2016 2021 2026 2031
Year
Employment Forecast
Figure 38: South West Study Area Employment Forecast (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007) The land use analysis revealed that the study area accommodates an employment forecast of 15,991 jobs in the year 2006, forecasted to grow to 27,363 jobs in the year 2031. There is a notable “sharp growth” between 2006 and 2016. The majority existing and future (minimal) of the employment growth is accommodated in the suburbs of Hoxton Park, Ingleburn and Prestons. (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport, TDC 2007). These results indicate that the South West Rail Link’s two stations of Edmondson Park and Leppington will be focus of residential home trips.
Transport Analysis
Total trips into and out of SWRL corridor by mode
60,000
50,000
40,000 Bus-government Bus-private Other 30,000 Train Vehicle Driver trips of No. Vehicle Passenger 20,000 Walk
10,000
0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in Trip mode
Figure 39: Total no. of trips into and out of SWRL Corridor by mode (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page A-74
Total trips into and out of SWRL corridor by purpose
35,000
30,000
25,000 Commute Education/chilcare Home 20,000 Other Personal business
15,000 Serve passenger No. of trips of No. Shopping Social/recreation 10,000 Work related business
5,000
0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in Trip purpose
Figure 40: Total no. of trips into and out of SWRL Corridor by purpose (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Trips into and out between SWRL Corridor and other parts of Sydney
60,000
Eastern Suburbs 50,000 Forest District Greater Western Sydney Hills District 40,000 Inner West North Shore (Lower) North Shore (Upper) 30,000 North Western Northern Beaches
No. of trips of No. Other (outside Sydney) 20,000 South Eastern Sydney South Western Sydney Southern Sydney 10,000 St George Area Sydney CBD
0 Weekdays out Weekdays in Weekends out Weekends in Other parts of Sydney
Figure 41: Total no. of trips between SWRL Corridor and other parts of Sydney (Source: NSW Ministry of Transport TDC 2007)
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page A-75
Figures 39 to 41 show the total trips into and out of the SWRL corridor by mode purpose and between the SWRL corridors and other parts of Sydney. Whilst figure 39 also (like the NWRL) indicates that private vehicle as the dominant form of transport into and out of the area, however on weekdays in, there is a high proportion of trips heading into the study area being undertaken by the train . The high number of trips into and out of the SWRL corridor for “home” purpose indicates that trips into and out of the area is primarily for commuting purposes. If the land uses mix changes, this trend will also change. Figure 41 reveals that a high number of trips are between the SWRL corridor and South Western Sydney. This makes trips into and out of the area still “within” the context of Western Sydney if we look at it from a whole of Sydney perspective, cross commuting trips to other parts of Sydney very minimal. This is a possible indicator that people are working and living within the South Western Sydney Region. A “challenge” for the SWRL is whether this will encourage more commuting to other parts of Sydney, or indeed, the future jobs forecast attract people from other parts of Sydney.
5.6 Future Influences on the Corridor Whilst the future plans for the South West Growth Centre are well in various stages of planning, ready to accommodate the future jobs and populations, the SWRL corridor has the potential to influence other projects, such as the future extension of the actual link, and be a platform for more detailed precinct planning in the South West Growth Centre. The SWRL will provide an opportunity for to achieve an optimum development of mixed land uses and also enhance the area’s long term success and hopefully assist with the continual planning system improvement and be an example of where good cooperation exists between all levels of Government and stakeholders.
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6. Evaluation and Conclusion In conclusion, this thesis has examined and analysed:
o The planning process of projected North West Rail Link in an “existing built up urban area” context.
o The planning process of projected South West Rail Link in a “future developing growth centre” area context.
o The role that “heavy rail” transport mode plays in integrated land use and transport relationship.
o Whether the North West and South West Rail Links are the answer to address the imbalance between public transport and private car usage?
o The consequences of land use planning in North West and South West Sydney if the two rail links were not to be built.
The North West and South West Rail links are an opportunity to promote heavy rail in being an influence on future land use patterns rather than just be a “rail system”. The North West Rail Link planning process was challenging as it had to fit in an “existing” built environment, whereas the South West Rail Link, one could argue, we are starting a new challenge on a new piece of paper. The continued use of the car is not sustainable, but having the new rail links provides “choice”. The progression of Draft State Environmental Planning Policy 66: Integrated Land Use and Transport should be reviewed as a result of these two rail links, and perhaps use as a case study for “best practice”.
There is still a need for improvement in clarifying the roles of each level of Government and stakeholders in the planning process. Indeed it would be better if Sydney had followed other examples in other states or countries to practice good integrated transport and land use planning. Each individual Government department and stakeholders focusing on “achieving” its own objectives, the common goal of making Sydney a better place to live becomes lost and it affects everyone, and then one would ask: “Is Sydney Australia’s Global City?”
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page A-77
7. References o Banister, D. (1994). Transport Planning. Second Edition 2002. Spon Press London and New York o Bureau of Transport Economics, 1998. Working Paper 39: Urban Transport Models: A review. Australian Government, Canberra. o Christopher Stapleton Consulting Pty Ltd. May 2004. SW Sector Transport Demands and Public Transport Networks. For Department of Infrastructure, Planning and Natural Resources o Christie R, (June 2001) The Christie Report-Long Term Strategic Plan for Rail
http://www.aptnsw.org.au/christie/HTU UTH Date accessed: 20/10/2007 th o City Rail Website: http://www.cityrail.info/HTU UTH (accessed 25P P September 2007) o Connell J, (ed) (2000) Sydney: The Emergence of a World City, Oxford University Press Melbourne. o GHD, 2006. North West Rail Link Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan. Prepared for Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation o GHD, May 2007. North West Rail Link: Preferred Project Report. Prepared for Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation o Gurran, N. (2007). Australian Urban Land Use Planning. Introducing Statutory Planning Practice In New South Wales. Sydney University Press. o Hutchinson, B.G. (1974). Principles of Urban Transport Systems Planning. Scripta Book Company USA o Hanson, S and Giuliano, G. (eds) (2004). The Geography of Urban Transportation, Third Edition. The Guilford Press New York and London o Lowry I.S. (1964). A model of metropolis. Technical Memorandum RM-40535- RC. The Rand Corporation. United States o Toon, J and Falk, J. (eds) (2003). Sydney: Planning or Politics. Town Planning for Sydney Region since 1945. The Planning Research Centre, University of Sydney. o Curtis, Carey and James, Bruce. An institutional model for land use and Transport Integration. Urban Policy and Research, Vol. 22, No. 3 P277-297, September 2004. Urban Policy and Research Melbourne, Australia o Alford, Gavin. Integrating public transport and land use planning. Perspectives from Victoria. Australian Planner, Vol.43, No.3, P6-7, September 2006. Planning Institute of Australia, Canberra. o HKSAR Government 1997. The Third Comprehensive Transport Study: Final Report.
http://www.td.gov.hk/publications_and_press_releases/publications/free_publicatHTU
ions/the_third_comprehensive_transport_study/index.htm UTH (Accessed 30th September 2007) o HKSAR Government 2007. Hong Kong Moving Ahead – A transport strategy for the future.
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http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/psp/publications/transport/publications/hk_move_aheHTU
ad_txt.htm UTH (Accessed 30th September 2007) o Litman, Todd (2004) Comprehensive Evaluation of Rail Transit Benefits. Victoria Transport Policy Institute, Canada. o Meyer, Bob, Fifty years of Sydney’s Planning, New Planner P10-15, June 2006 o Newman, P and Kenworthy J 1992. Winning Back the Cities. Pluto Press, Sydney, Australia th o NSW T-way website. http://www.t-way.nsw.gov.au/HTU UTH (accessed 9P P September 2007) o NSW Legislation. Environmental and Planning Assessment Act 1979. st http://www.legislation.nsw.gov.au/HTU UTH (Accessed 1P P October 2007) o NSW Government November 2006. Urban Transport Statement. Responding to the Challenges of Travel and Transport within and across Sydney. o NSW Government December 2005. City of Cities A Plan for Sydney’s Future (Metropolitan Strategy) o NSW Government 2006. State Infrastructure Strategy o NSW Government October 2006. State Plan. A new direction for NSW o NSW Department of Planning 2005. Planning Report for the South West Growth Centre o NSW Department of Planning 2005. Preliminary Infrastructure Report for the North West and South West Growth Centres o NSW Department of Planning 2005. Managing Sydney’s Growth Centres o NSW Department of Planning 2006. Annual Report 2005-2006 o NSW Department of Planning 2005. Metropolitan Development Program (MDP) Residential Forecasts 2005/06-2014/15 o NSW Ministry of Transport 2003. Ministerial Inquiry into Sustainable Public
transport. http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/inquiries/parry-final-report.pdfHTU UTH (Accessed 29th September 2007) o NSW Ministry of Transport 2004. Review of Bus Services in NSW. Final
Report. http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/inquiries/unsworth-final-bus-HTU
report_full.pdf UTH (Accessed 28th September 2007) o NSW Ministry of Transport. Fact Sheet – Integrated Planning o NSW Ministry of Transport, Contract Region 4 Profile.
http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/abouttrans/Region-4.pdfHTU UTH (Accessed 20th October 2007) o NSW Ministry of Transport, Contract Region 2 Profile.
http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/abouttrans/Region-2.pdfHTU UTH (Accessed 20th October 2007)
o NSW Ministry of Transport Data Centre: http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/tdc/HTU UTH th (accessed 20P P September 2007)
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o NSW Ministry of Transport, Transport Data Centre (TDC) 2007. Household Characteristics, Small Area Population and Employment Forecast and Household Travel Survey Data Set for the North West and South West Rail Link Areas. o NSW Roads and Traffic Authority. Annual Report 2005-2006 o Ministerial Inquiry into Sustainable Public transport (Parry Report) NSW Ministry for Transport December 2003 th http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/ministerial-inquiry/HTU UTH (accessed 18P P October 2007) th o NSWrail.net website. http://www.nswrail.net/HTU UTH (Accessed 17P SeptemberP 2007) o Parsons Brinckerhoff, November 2006. South West Rail Link. Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment. For Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation o Parsons Brinckerhoff, May 2007. South West Rail Link Concept Plan and Environmental Assessment. Submissions Report For Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation o Potter, S and Skinner, M.J. 2000. On transport integration: a contribution to a better understanding. Futures. Vol.32. No.3. P275-287 th o RailCorp Website: http://www.railcorp.info/HTU UTH (accessed 25P P September 2007)
o Southworth,T F, 1995. A technical review of urban land use-transportation models as a tool for evaluating vehicle travel reduction strategies. Centre for
transportation analysis. http://www.bts.gov/NTL/DOCS/ornl.htmlHTU .UTH (Accessed 11th September 2007)
o TransportT Infrastructure Development Corporation (TIDC) Annual Report 2006. T
http://www.tidc.nsw.gov.au/Documents/900_anrpt06.pdfHTU UTH (Accessed 26th September 2007) o Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation. North West Rail Link Planning Update No. 3 June 2007 o Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation. South West Rail Link Planning Update No. 3 May 2007 o Victoria Department of Infrastructure. Draft Public Transport Guidelines for Land Use Development, 2006 o Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils. Response to TIDC NWRL Environmental Assessment and Concept Plan, February 2007
o AtT last, Sydney may get a plan. Sydney Morning Herald April 23 2004.
o BlueprintT fails to fix city’s woes, Sydney Morning Herald December 3 2005
http://smh.com.au/news/national/blueprint-fails-to-fix-citys-HTU
woes/2005/12/02/1133422108598.html UTH o How does commuting to and from work effect you? Sydney Morning Herald th Readers Opinions Thursday 5P P May 2005.
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page A-80
o Rail passenger numbers fall by half a million in two years Sydney Morning
Herald 3rd May 2005 http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Rail-passenger-HTU
numbers-fall-by-half-a-million-in-two-years/2005/05/02/1114886318685.html UTH o Transport could land $1.7bn levies. Sydney Morning Herald September 10,
2003. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/09/09/1062902056696.htmlHTU UTH o Can we afford not to build an effective public transport system? Sydney Morning
Herald May 31, 2005. http://www.smh.com.au/news/National/Can-we-afford-HTU not-to-build-an-effective-public-transport-
system/2005/05/30/1117305563805.html UTH o NSW fast-tracks plan for rail links. Sydney Morning Herald August 22, 2007
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/nsw-fasttracks-plan-for-rail-HTU
links/2007/08/22/1187462312437.html UTH o On the rails to nowhere. Sydney Morning Herald July 21 2007.
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nowhere/2007/07/20/1184560040323.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1 UTH o Costa push to derail link. Sydney Morning Herald September 25 2007.
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link/2007/09/24/1190486226330.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1 UTH o Rail Line will proceed: Watkins. Sydney Morning Herald. September 26 2007.
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watkins/2007/09/25/1190486313208.html UTH o Top deck plan for crowded buses. Sydney Morning Herald. March 16 2007.
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buses/2007/03/13/1173722471230.html UTH
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Appendix A
Household Characteristics, Population
and Employment Forecast Data provided by Transport Data Centre,
NSW Ministry of Transport.
Calvin Cheng 3103753 Public Transport and Land Use Planning in North West and South West Sydney Page C-1
North West, South West Rail link corridor Household characteristics by House hold Travel zone Household zone Household Travel zone Household Population Usual Vehicle Extra vehicle NW_rail_link Westmead 3,514 9,385 4,459 639 NW_rail_link Schofields 1,081 3,308 1,579 293 NW_rail_link Marayong 7,303 23,158 10,165 1,672 NW_rail_link Seven Hills 1,732 5,335 2,211 558 NW_rail_link Blacktown Hospital 1,961 4,506 2,269 530 NW_rail_link Blacktown 1,884 4,267 2,123 219 NW_rail_link Kings Langley 2,522 8,190 5,035 693 NW_rail_link Lalor Park 4,635 11,825 6,375 2,005 NW_rail_link Toongabbie 3,160 8,465 4,937 872 NW_rail_link Wentworthville 3,800 10,911 5,799 1,026 NW_rail_link Winston Hills 4,912 14,252 8,941 1,428 NW_rail_link Winston Hills East 2,160 5,423 3,504 305 NW_rail_link Westmead - Westmead Hospital 2,683 6,967 2,447 486 NW_rail_link Northmead 1,200 2,873 2,050 152 NW_rail_link Carlingford 4,007 12,253 7,868 728 NW_rail_link West Pennant Hills (west) 2,700 8,912 5,368 418 NW_rail_link Castle Hill West 2,568 6,827 4,285 904 NW_rail_link Baulkham Hills 2,074 5,557 3,555 137 NW_rail_link Baulkham Hills Southwest 2,751 9,011 5,072 930 NW_rail_link Kellyville 2,119 6,731 4,192 344 NW_rail_link Kenthurst 1,625 5,273 3,935 97 NW_rail_link Cherrybrook 2,669 9,374 5,652 546 NW_rail_link Thornleigh 3,620 10,014 5,638 871 NW_rail_link Cheltenham 1,837 5,438 3,611 485 NW_rail_link Beecroft 4,324 13,117 7,777 1,487 NW_rail_link Epping West 3,849 11,104 6,319 1,210 NW_rail_link Vineyard North 1,037 3,505 2,421 246 NW_rail_link Vineyard 1,390 2,988 2,615 280 NW_rail_link Rouse Hill West 1,348 4,282 2,638 285 NW_rail_link Quakers Hill 2,741 8,896 4,367 428 NW_rail_link Parklea 1,559 4,720 2,751 400 NW_rail_link North Rocks 1,357 4,349 2,868 173 NW_rail_link Castle Hill North 1,807 5,794 3,965 75 NW_rail_link Baulkham Hills East 2,669 7,955 5,151 510 NW_rail_link Baulkham Hills West 1,723 5,432 3,414 912 NW_rail_link Kellyville South 964 2,764 1,711 111 NW_rail_link Beaumont Hills 941 3,391 2,208 537 NW_rail_link Annagrove 561 1,863 1,891 0 NW_rail_link Box Hill 386 989 791 58 NW_rail_link Glenhaven 2,299 7,861 4,924 521 NW_rail_link Glenhaven East 2,466 9,076 5,035 746 NW_rail_link Schofields South 1,411 4,608 2,313 100 NW_rail_link Schofields East 687 1,608 1,260 282 NW_rail_link Kellyville Ridge 804 2,928 1,827 100 NW_rail_link Glenwood 1,442 4,136 2,321 264 NW_rail_link Rouse Hill 1,043 3,743 2,251 230 NW_rail_link Rouse Hill South 610 1,603 1,482 77 NW_rail_link Kellyville North 538 1,485 1,342 0 NW_rail_link Castle Hill Showground 848 3,211 2,690 0 NW_rail_link Norwest Business Park 672 2,496 1,472 249 NW_rail_link Castle Hill 865 2,432 1,766 51 NW_rail_link Castle Hill South 1,085 2,497 1,437 255 NW_rail_link West Pennant Hills (east) 2,095 8,199 4,685 972 NW_rail_link Dural 823 2,524 1,527 205 NW_rail_link Bella Vista 2,038 7,653 4,734 264 NW_rail_link Riverstone South 1,843 4,751 2,113 745 NW_rail_link Riverstone 1,622 5,213 2,628 219 NW_rail_link Riverstone North 683 2,358 1,881 92 NW_rail_link Riverstone East 998 3,391 3,176 332 NW_rail_link Epping - Boronia Park 567 1,237 795 122 NW_rail_link Epping 887 1,758 798 26 NW_rail_link Epping East 1,335 2,936 1,238 135 NW_rail_link Pendle Hill 878 2,627 1,286 207 SW_rail_link Hoxton Park 2,231 6,699 3,734 333 SW_rail_link Edmondson Park 798 2,934 2,079 181 SW_rail_link Ingleburn 1,191 2,864 1,167 244 SW_rail_link Hoxton West 1,124 3,668 2,614 181 SW_rail_link Leppington 753 1,459 897 320 SW_rail_link Prestons 1,283 4,074 2,311 828 SW_rail_link Austral 1,578 5,219 3,260 0 Total 132,666 396,656 232,996 31,327 Reason for using Car instead of public transport for travel to work in North West and South West area
Reason for Car Weekday Weekend Bus/train unavailable/inaccessible 39,548 11,760 Problems with public transport 25,487 4,641 Vehicle faster 38,292 10,902 Provided by company/business 9,510 1,499 Need vehicle for work 9,648 3,588 Need vehicle for other trips 8,292 1,539 Can make trip whenever I like 11,221 2,722 No timetable/waiting constraints 12,032 2,454 Arrives closer to destination 11,663 1,887 More comfortable 16,338 3,529 Carpooling arrangements 1,594 595 Other specify 13,471 4,434 Total Response 197,096 49,549 Total People To Work 86,667 25,385 Reason for using Public transport for travel to work in North West and South West area
Reason for Public transport Weekday Weekend Parking problems/costs 8,415 410 Don't have car 2,953 413 Cheaper 6,896 0 Car used by someone else 2,265 135 Faster 6,316 0 Arrives closer to destination 1,928 0 Less stressful 5,965 410 Live/work close to public transport 3,408 0 Enjoy time to read/relax 3,727 0 Environmental reasons 1,155 0 Employer assists with public transport costs 376 0 Other specify 4,684 0 Total Response 48,087 1,368 Total People To Work 20,784 958
* One person can chose more than one response. Employment and Population forecast for North West and South West area by Travel zone
Employment Forecast Population Forecast Travel zone Travel zone Name Statistical Local Area code emp2006 emp2011 emp2016 emp2021 emp2026 emp2031 erp2006 erp2011 erp2016 erp2021 erp2026 erp2031 331 Westmead Holroyd (C) 2,887 2,886 2,861 2,859 2,829 2,787 10,566 10,898 10,936 11,023 11,099 11,153 365 Hoxton Park Liverpool (C) 2,808 2,948 3,036 3,130 3,199 3,255 16,475 19,090 21,896 21,651 21,390 21,092 366 Edmondson Park Liverpool (C) 398 537 1,167 1,291 1,408 1,520 2,016 5,852 13,075 13,237 14,121 15,026 379 Ingleburn Campbelltown (C) 7,326 7,659 7,979 8,270 8,532 9,788 4,236 4,327 4,748 5,202 5,631 6,026 404 Schofields Blacktown (C) - North 197 212 226 238 248 256 2,685 3,220 5,582 8,849 8,948 8,879 405 Marayong Blacktown (C) - North 7,785 7,516 7,795 7,589 7,465 7,968 24,919 25,145 25,461 26,108 26,703 27,215 419 Seven Hills Blacktown (C) - South-East 881 953 1,016 1,072 1,113 1,149 3,539 3,670 3,737 3,870 3,993 4,099 420 Blacktown Hospital Blacktown (C) - South-East 9,088 9,128 9,214 9,279 9,262 9,229 4,501 4,953 5,540 6,361 7,145 7,878 421 Blacktown Blacktown (C) - South-East 7,331 7,343 7,410 7,407 7,318 7,209 9,075 9,977 10,783 11,957 13,073 14,109 422 Kings Langley Blacktown (C) - North 3,499 3,744 3,976 4,175 4,316 4,431 13,200 13,098 12,829 12,629 12,422 12,194 423 Lalor Park Blacktown (C) - South-East 1,214 1,304 1,387 1,459 1,514 1,560 15,301 15,047 14,792 14,648 14,488 14,295 424 Seven Hills North Blacktown (C) - South-East 10,308 10,432 10,814 11,026 11,107 11,098 614 642 659 690 719 744 425 Toongabbie Parramatta (C) 732 718 691 674 655 634 6,702 6,671 6,685 6,730 6,769 6,793 426 Wentworthville Parramatta (C) 1,702 1,617 1,520 1,449 1,377 1,308 9,162 9,321 9,435 9,590 9,735 9,859 427 Winston Hills Parramatta (C) 992 951 898 861 822 782 11,575 11,649 11,773 11,953 12,134 12,300 428 Winston Hills East Parramatta (C) 328 328 321 317 310 303 4,840 4,845 4,927 5,030 5,129 5,217 429 Westmead - Westmead Hospital Parramatta (C) 14,397 15,071 15,602 16,302 16,916 17,558 7,198 8,542 9,301 10,104 10,929 11,762 450 Northmead Baulkham Hills (A) 1,036 1,084 1,117 1,146 1,160 1,167 6,471 7,573 8,981 10,844 12,649 14,381 451 Carlingford Baulkham Hills (A) 2,605 2,768 2,897 3,010 3,082 3,130 12,706 12,884 13,213 13,767 14,290 14,764 452 West Pennant Hills (west) Baulkham Hills (A) 2,565 2,713 2,827 2,930 2,994 3,034 9,647 9,901 9,963 10,139 10,302 10,440 453 Castle Hill West Baulkham Hills (A) 4,201 4,425 4,589 4,704 4,739 4,722 7,477 7,339 7,308 7,347 7,376 7,387 454 Baulkham Hills Baulkham Hills (A) 2,635 2,805 2,945 3,069 3,150 3,205 7,987 8,822 9,473 10,381 11,258 12,095 455 Baulkham Hills Southwest Baulkham Hills (A) 3,490 3,689 3,822 3,933 3,986 3,997 7,884 7,728 7,664 7,666 7,659 7,633 456 Kellyville Baulkham Hills (A) 1,570 1,637 1,694 1,749 1,782 1,801 17,261 19,603 19,511 19,209 18,899 18,549 457 Kenthurst Baulkham Hills (A) 2,063 2,176 2,261 2,337 2,385 2,413 5,346 5,230 5,124 5,046 4,966 4,881 470 Cherrybrook Hornsby (A) 1,892 1,983 2,055 2,119 2,156 2,173 12,385 12,164 11,989 11,847 11,703 11,544 471 Thornleigh Hornsby (A) 5,126 5,473 5,745 5,977 6,122 6,213 10,940 11,191 11,404 11,514 11,615 11,692 472 Cheltenham Hornsby (A) 1,166 1,211 1,252 1,293 1,323 1,344 4,373 4,426 4,482 4,505 4,523 4,530 473 Beecroft Hornsby (A) 3,546 3,739 3,892 4,039 4,140 4,211 13,361 13,195 13,063 12,949 12,837 12,712 474 Epping West Hornsby (A) 2,604 2,624 2,611 2,596 2,559 2,514 12,260 12,139 11,995 11,864 11,723 11,560 583 Hoxton West Liverpool (C) 501 545 576 605 626 643 6,593 7,317 7,497 7,419 7,336 7,241 599 Varroville Campbelltown (C) 163 184 200 215 229 242 163 186 214 244 273 301 601 Macquarie Links Campbelltown (C) 578 650 703 755 801 846 2,172 5,632 9,754 9,617 9,477 9,323 609 Vineyard North Hawkesbury (C) 485 526 553 575 590 598 827 811 797 1,154 2,943 4,662 610 Vineyard Blacktown (C) - North 1,826 1,908 1,977 2,030 2,056 2,069 669 1,041 2,823 5,599 5,493 5,382 611 Rouse Hill West Blacktown (C) - North 158 172 183 194 202 210 472 473 715 1,701 4,108 4,847 612 Quakers Hill Blacktown (C) - North 1,371 1,469 1,555 1,629 1,681 1,725 13,293 13,309 13,761 14,537 15,653 16,774 613 Parklea Blacktown (C) - North 365 402 437 469 496 520 7,308 8,521 8,672 8,732 8,878 9,067 619 North Rocks Baulkham Hills (A) 3,858 4,007 4,058 4,091 4,072 4,017 5,408 5,315 5,321 5,387 5,444 5,486 620 Castle Hill North Baulkham Hills (A) 2,466 2,667 2,818 2,948 3,037 3,093 5,762 5,709 5,750 5,863 5,967 6,053 621 Baulkham Hills East Baulkham Hills (A) 1,590 1,647 1,695 1,740 1,767 1,782 8,336 8,175 8,116 8,128 8,130 8,112 622 Baulkham Hills West Baulkham Hills (A) 1,023 1,079 1,120 1,159 1,186 1,207 7,701 7,551 7,496 7,506 7,507 7,490 623 Kellyville South Baulkham Hills (A) 421 629 1,339 1,848 1,854 1,857 3,083 6,115 13,503 19,565 19,198 18,793 624 Beaumont Hills Baulkham Hills (A) 214 223 231 239 245 250 5,512 5,803 6,486 7,344 7,580 7,456 625 Annagrove Baulkham Hills (A) 250 255 259 263 265 266 651 635 1,821 4,022 4,755 4,651 627 Box Hill Baulkham Hills (A) 57 62 66 169 671 1,470 445 442 620 1,684 6,749 14,995 666 Leppington Camden (A) 298 529 851 1,066 2,374 3,375 747 748 739 2,783 5,947 9,123 670 Prestons Liverpool (C) 3,130 4,460 5,034 5,356 5,436 5,385 6,448 7,613 8,465 8,446 8,419 8,376 671 Austral Liverpool (C) 790 864 921 963 1,591 2,308 2,488 2,487 3,422 8,671 16,279 22,806 690 Glenhaven Baulkham Hills (A) 1,394 1,446 1,493 1,537 1,564 1,578 8,873 8,725 8,743 8,860 8,964 9,043 691 Glenhaven East Hornsby (A) 1,786 1,879 1,952 2,020 2,066 2,098 10,657 11,021 10,926 10,868 10,835 10,816 743 Schofields South Blacktown (C) - North 160 173 283 591 1,296 1,998 1,134 1,117 2,431 6,178 12,743 19,592 746 Schofields East Blacktown (C) - North 136 439 1,039 1,239 1,538 1,935 974 4,631 10,214 12,228 15,881 19,706 747 Kellyville Ridge Blacktown (C) - North 569 787 902 916 927 937 5,489 8,287 9,644 9,520 9,434 9,344 748 Glenwood Blacktown (C) - North 988 1,067 1,139 1,204 1,255 1,302 10,118 10,404 10,181 9,999 9,806 9,597 750 Rouse Hill Baulkham Hills (A) 926 977 1,017 1,050 1,068 1,076 6,301 6,321 6,565 6,918 7,044 7,030 751 Rouse Hill South Baulkham Hills (A) 303 2,209 4,213 5,816 6,717 7,116 2,123 4,553 7,211 7,574 7,603 7,431 752 Kellyville North Baulkham Hills (A) 68 73 77 80 83 84 237 232 985 2,379 2,846 2,784 753 Castle Hill Showground Baulkham Hills (A) 6,853 7,683 8,280 8,674 9,007 9,379 725 836 870 905 939 970 754 Norwest Business Park Baulkham Hills (A) 16,884 28,417 34,559 34,444 35,239 35,060 3,338 5,052 5,976 6,564 6,548 6,516 755 Castle Hill Baulkham Hills (A) 2,882 3,171 3,379 3,538 3,623 3,656 766 1,115 1,337 1,626 1,907 2,175 756 Castle Hill South Baulkham Hills (A) 2,341 2,498 2,631 2,750 2,830 2,888 1,613 2,342 2,687 3,142 3,582 4,001 757 West Pennant Hills (east) Baulkham Hills (A) 3,843 4,056 4,281 4,509 4,691 4,839 8,971 8,825 8,842 8,957 9,059 9,141 761 Dural Hornsby (A) 1,022 1,077 1,113 1,140 1,151 1,151 1,267 1,255 1,248 1,241 1,235 1,228 769 Bella Vista Baulkham Hills (A) 656 685 710 734 749 759 7,954 7,845 7,778 7,774 7,762 7,733 824 Riverstone South Blacktown (C) - North 646 691 730 763 789 811 2,723 2,791 3,227 3,828 3,845 3,815 825 Riverstone Blacktown (C) - North 391 425 459 490 517 542 2,638 2,716 3,193 3,833 3,780 3,720 826 Riverstone North Blacktown (C) - North 35 37 40 43 46 48 89 133 362 808 1,347 1,508 827 Riverstone East Blacktown (C) - North 96 98 101 103 103 103 236 241 448 1,275 3,291 3,915 828 Epping - Boronia Park Parramatta (C) 959 998 1,029 1,058 1,077 1,094 1,274 1,435 1,447 1,466 1,483 1,498 829 Epping Hornsby (A) 348 368 386 402 414 423 648 650 659 665 670 674 830 Epping East Hornsby (A) 2,271 2,359 2,420 2,475 2,504 2,517 1,369 1,375 1,391 1,404 1,415 1,424 845 Pendle Hill Parramatta (C) 1,165 1,123 1,067 1,025 978 930 2,365 2,378 2,397 2,427 2,457 2,484