Growing speculation over metro’s fate
- Author:
- Ehssan Veiszadeh
- Posted:
- Thursday, 28 January 2010
After a week of shock revelations regarding the State Government’s controversial Sydney Metro, pundits on both sides of the political divide have begun speculating on the fate of the ill-fated project.
Last week Premier Kristina Keneally announced a final decision on Metro would be made next month, three months later than was planned.
This came shortly after a statement from her office that Rozelle building acquisitions would be put on hold until the Transport Blueprint was made public in February.
Shadow Transport Minister, Gladys Berejiklian, slammed the government for not having a clear strategy on the state’s transport future. “I think what this demonstrates is that the Government is in total disarray when it comes to the future of public transport,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“What they’ve done now is to create even more uncertainty because they haven’t actually said the project is cancelled. They’ve put one part of the acquisitions on hold without putting the other section on hold. And then they’ve also announced a scope for a light rail feasibility study, which really should have happened before the project was announced,” she said.
Ms Berejiklian said that the government needed to explain why Pyrmont acquisitions were still ongoing while Rozelle acquisitions were put on hold. “I want to send a strong message to communities in the inner-west, including the Pyrmont residents, that we don’t support the Metro and we’ve never supported it. Under us we’ll be putting that money into parts of Sydney that don’t have any public transport options.”
Meanwhile Labor Councillor Meredith Burgmann said the decision to retain Pyrmont metro station could be a part of establishing a transport interchange at White Bay. “I have no real knowledge of what decision might be made, but it makes sense to me if it went to White Bay,” Cr Burgmann said.
“The Lord Mayor has made submissions that there should be a transport interchange at White Bay and it sort of makes sense.”
by Ehssan Veiszadeh
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January 28th, 2010 @ 8:44 am
Ms Berejiklian is sadly mistaken if she believes that the majority of people that live in the inner west are apposed to the metro. Apart from a negative local media, a few affected shop owners & the car loving NIMBY’s of Balmain the majority of people look forward to this fast, green, efficient, new mode of public transport. I think sadly its obvious now that the Rozelle leg including a station will be axed, but if the stories/ rumors are true & the first stage is to open in 2015 & the West Metro a year later in 2016, the first stage has to have a stabling, maintenance & control centre which is currently planned for the old Rozelle Marshalling Yards meaning the first stage will have to be built at least as far as White Bay, so the station at Pyrmont will still be built.
I think a transport interchange at White Bay makes sense but should focus on light rail. I have previously argued that instead of competing against the metro, the light rail system should be re-routed so it feeds the metro station at White Bay, with the current line running from Central being re-routed to White Bay after the Rozelle Bay stop & the proposed line from Dulwich Hill running to White Bay after the Lilyfield stop. This line would not go directly into the city. This would create a light rail hub at the White Bay metro station.
Will be interesting to see what happens now in a few weeks time…
January 29th, 2010 @ 3:33 am
Michael is right, there will be many in Rozelle like myself, saddened by what has happened.
This newspaper group should rely less on parroting the views of the do-nothing Liberal Party and actually find out what the people of the inner west want. Relying on politicians and their ginger groups, and businessmen with self-interested agendas is NOT what an “alternative” newspaper should be doing.
You have NOT in the past given us a reliable picture of this. You have copied the mainstream media and presented a negative, one-sided, nimby-obsessed, and reactionary version of events.
Yes, there are people here who don’t want any change. There are many with their luxury SUVs who NEVER use public transport, and don’t what the “riff-raff” to come to Balmain and Rozelle. And the Party of NO (The Greens) is siding with the Libs on this. At the last election, the libs wanted to extend privatisation in public transport.
Is this what you want? From the above story, it seems so. The Libs haven’t announced anything yet. But we can guarantee it won’t favour the people.
It’s very sad this is the view of your newspapers.
January 31st, 2010 @ 2:57 pm
Come on Gladys Berejiklian, tell us what the Libs will do for public transport in the inner west.
You haven’t even said you’ll build the light rail extension to Dulwich Hill, have you?
But if so, who will operate it? A French multi-national? Or some other privatised operator?
Oh yeah, you’ve said you WILL spend the public transport dollar elsewhere. The inner west and the inner city can go get stuffed. That’ll win a few votes here, for sure.
The weird thing is that this is also the view of this “alternative” newspaper – which claims to be part of the inner west and inner city.
Funny old world…