March 2013 Submissions Report Stage 2 – Stations, Rail Infrastructure and Systems Incorporating Preferred Infrastructure Report northwestraillink Submissions Report Stage 2 – Stations, Rail Infrastructure and Systems Incorporating Preferred Infrastructure Report MARCH 2013 northwestraillink 1-4 NORTH WEST RAIL LINK Submissions Report Table of Contents 5.2 NSW Department of Education and Communities 5-1 1 Introduction 1-1 5.3 NSW Environment Protection Authority 5-4 1.1 The Project 1-1 5.4 Heritage Council of NSW 5-14 1.2 Purpose of this Report 1-1 5.5 Office of Environment and Heritage 5-19 1.3 Next Steps 1-2 5.6 Roads and Maritime Services 5-20 5.7 Blacktown City Council 5-22 2 Clarifications 2-1 5.8 Parramatta City Council 5-25 2.1 Old Windsor Road / Balmoral Road / Miami Street intersection arrangement 2-1 5.9 The Hills Shire Council 5-30 2.1.1 Old Windsor Road / Balmoral Road and Old Windsor Road / 5.10 Hornsby Shire Council 5-38 Miami Street intersections 2-1 2.1.2 Proposed intersection arrangement 2-1 2.2 Cherrybrook Station bus routes 2-5 6 Other Key Stakeholder Submissions 6-1 6.1 Business / Commercial Submissions 6-1 3 Community Involvement 3-1 6.1.1 BP Australia 6-1 6.1.2 McDonald’s Pty Ltd 6-5 3.1 Consultation overview 3-1 6.1.3 Budokan Judo Club 6-13 3.2 Pre EIS 2 Exhibition Consultation Activities 3-1 6.1.4 QIC Property Group 6-17 3.3 EIS 2 Exhibition Consultation Activities 3-2 6.1.5 The GPT Group (owners and managers of Rouse Hill Town Centre) 6-20 3.3.1 Exhibition venues 3-2 6.1.6 Busways Group Pty Ltd 6-53 3.3.2 EIS 2 Overview Report 3-2 6.1.7 LMN Fuels Pty Ltd (7-Eleven Service Station, Pennant Hills Road) 6-56 3.3.3 Communication and publicity 3-3 6.1.8 Norwest Business Park Mulpha FKP Pty Ltd (owner of Norwest Business Park) 6-57 3.3.4 Community information sessions 3-4 6.1.9 Lend Lease GPT (Rouse Hill) Pty Ltd 6-60 3.3.5 Meetings with stakeholders and community 3-5 6.1.10 Hawkesbury Harvest 6-64 3.3.6 Deliberative community forums 3-6 6.1.11 O.K. Caravan Park Pty Ltd 6-64 3.3.7 Online Forums 3-7 6.1.12 Dexus Funds Management Limited 6-65 3.4 Ongoing Consultation 3-7 6.1.13 Comfort Delgro Cabcharge 6-77 6.2 Community Group / Organisation Submissions 6-81 4 Submissions received 4-1 6.2.1 Castle Hill Action Group 6-81 4.1 Submissions overview 4-1 6.2.2 Robert Road Group 6-85 6.2.3 Robert Road Residents Group 6-95 4.2 Key stakeholders 4-2 6.2.4 Kayla Way NWRL Action Group 6-105 4.3 Individual submissions 4-3 6.2.5 Arundel Way Neighbourhood Association 6-117 6.2.6 Castle Hill & Hills District Agricultural Society 6-118 5 Government Department/ 6.2.7 Beecroft Netball Club 6-124 6.2.8 West Pennant Hills Valley Progress Association 6-126 Agency and Local Council Submissions 5-1 6.2.9 Beecroft Cheltenham Civic Trust 6-131 5.1 RailCorp 5-1 6.2.10 Beecroft Sports Club Incorporated 6-143 6.2.11 Castle Hill Players 6-146 7.3.4 Station design 7-32 6.2.12 Action for Public Transport (NSW) 6-148 7.3.5 Station facilities 7-35 6.2.13 Bicycle NSW 6-150 7.3.6 Bicycle facilities 7-36 6.2.14 Bike North 6-151 7.3.7 Community facilities 7-36 6.2.15 Inala 6-158 7.3.8 Public safety 7-37 6.3 School Submissions 6-160 7.3.9 Alignment 7-38 6.3.1 Tangara School for Girls 6-160 7.3.10 Alignment 7-39 6.3.2 Carrington Pre-School Kindergarten 6-162 7.3.11 Alternatives 7-40 6.3.3 Kindalin Childcare Centre 6-164 7.4 Environment (operation and construction) 7-44 6.4 Property Management Groups 6-171 7.4.1 Flora and fauna 7-44 6.4.1 Executive Committee Strata Plan 19086 6-171 7.4.2 Heritage 7-47 6.4.2 The Owners Corporation Northpoint Apartments 6-174 7.4.3 Sustainability 7-48 6.4.3 Beaumont Strata Management 6-176 7.4.4 Waterways 7-49 6.4.4 Executive Committee of the Owners Corporation for 7.4.5 Visual impact 7-49 121 Olive Grove and Pichola Place, Castle Hill 6-180 7.4.6 Soils and geology 7-51 6.4.5 Norwest Association Limited 6-181 7.5 Operation 7-51 6.5 Anonymous 6-184 7.5.1 Fares 7-51 6.5.1 Anonymous 1 6-184 7.5.2 Noise and vibration 7-52 6.5.2 Anonymous 2 6-185 7.5.3 Timetables / trip duration 7-57 7.5.4 Traffic impacts / volume 7-62 7 Individual Community Submissions 7-1 7.5.5 Type of trains 7-75 7.5.6 Light spill 7-77 7.1 Communication 7-1 7.5.7 Business impacts 7-77 7.1.1 Cost of communication 7-1 7.5.8 Community facility impacts 7-78 7.1.2 Consultation 7-1 7.5.9 Air quality 7-78 7.2 Construction 7-11 7.5.10 Public safety 7-81 7.2.1 Air quality 7-11 7.5.11 Train amenity 7-85 7.2.2 Business impacts 7-12 7.5.12 Maintenance 7-87 7.2.3 Construction hours 7-13 7.6 Planning 7-87 7.2.4 Sites / compounds 7-13 7.6.1 Future growth 7-87 7.2.5 Heavy vehicle movements 7-15 7.6.2 Patronage forecast 7-90 7.2.6 Noise and vibration 7-16 7.6.3 Approval process 7-91 7.2.7 Spoil and waste management 7-21 7.6.4 Long-term transport planning 7-93 7.2.8 Traffic and transport 7-22 7.6.5 Land use planning 7-98 7.2.9 Access 7-22 7.2.10 Public safety 7-23 7.7 Project 7-102 7.7.1 Funding / cost 7-102 7.2.11 Tunnelling 7-24 7.7.2 Need for project 7-104 7.2.12 Community facility impacts 7-25 7.7.3 Timing 7-106 7.2.13 Surface water and flooding 7-26 7.7.4 Alternatives 7-107 7.2.14 Cumulative impacts 7-27 7.2.15 Light spill 7-28 7.8 Property 7-111 7.3 Design 7-28 7.8.1 Property acquisition 7-111 7.8.2 Property condition surveys 7-112 7.3.1 Accessibility 7-28 7.8.3 Property damage 7-113 7.3.2 Station / stabling location 7-29 7.8.4 Property value 7-115 7.3.3 Ventilation 7-31 7.9 Transport 7-118 9.8 Ecology 9-19 7.9.1 Bus integration 7-118 9.9 Visual amenity 9-21 7.9.2 Network capacity 7-124 9.10 Climate change and greenhouse gas emissions 9-23 7.9.3 Parking availability 7-127 9.11 Surface Water and flooding 9-25 7.9.4 Pedestrian and bicycle access 7-130 7.9.5 Rail integration 7-132 9.12 Air Quality 9-29 7.9.6 Taxi access 7-137 9.13 Waste and resource management 9-31 7.9.7 Kiss-and-ride 7-137 9.14 Cumulative Impacts 9-32 7.9.8 Epping-Chatswood Rail Link 7-138 References 8 Preferred Infrastructure Report 8-1 8.1 Overview 8-1 Appendix 8.2 Bella Vista preferred design 8-1 8.2.1 Description of changes 8-1 8.2.2 Construction timeframe 8-2 8.3 Environmental overview of preferred design 8-5 8.4 Operational traffic and transport impacts 8-7 8.4.1 Summary of EIS 2 impacts 8-7 8.4.2 Summary of revised impacts 8-8 8.4.3 Conclusion 8-11 8.5 Noise and vibration impacts 8-13 8.5.1 Summary of EIS 2 impacts 8-13 8.5.2 Summary of revised impacts 8-13 8.5.3 Conclusion 8-14 8.6 Local business impacts 8-16 8.6.1 Summary of EIS 2 impacts 8-16 8.6.2 Summary of revised impacts 8-17 8.6.3 Conclusion 8-17 8.7 Land Use and Community Facilities 8-19 8.7.1 Summary of EIS 2 impacts 8-19 8.7.2 Summary of revised impacts 8-19 8.7.3 Conclusion 8-20 8.8 Summary and Justification 8-21 9 Revised Environmental Mitigation Measures 9-1 9.1 Soils and Groundwater 9-2 9.2 Traffic and Transport 9-7 9.3 Noise and Vibration 9-11 9.4 European Heritage 9-14 9.5 Indigenous Heritage 9-15 9.6 Local Business 9-16 9.7 Land use and community facilities 9-17 1 1-1 Introduction 1 Introduction 1.1 The Project EIS 2 has been prepared to address: The environmental assessment requirements specified in the Concept Plan The North West Rail Link (NWRL) Project has been identified by the NSW Approval / Staged Infrastructure Approval and supplementary Government as a key priority railway transport infrastructure project.