The following can be attributed to Liverpool Mayor Ned Mannoun
The Federal Government is to be congratulated for its pre-election promise of $1 billion for the land needed to connect Western Sydney International Airport (WSIA) to Southwestern Sydney by rail.
The six kilometre line from Leppington to the airport is the missing link in the Sydney public transport network, linking the Sydney Metro Western Sydney Airport line to the T2 and T5 Train network.
Southwest Sydney is already clogged to the point of standstill every morning and afternoon when 15 minute commutes become hour long endurance tests. Unless goods, passengers and the hundreds of thousands moving here have easy access to WSIA, it will also wither at the end of the vine.
Today's announcement - together with the recent announcement about Fifteenth Avenue is another success for Liverpool City Council's advocacy campaign.
Two questions: When will a complete project be announced? Will the Coalition match or improve it?
Today we merely bought land. Nothing about when the job will be finished nor who will fund it – which we estimate at $10 billion – at today's prices. The longer it goes, the more expensive it gets.
Thank you, Prime Minister for promising $1 billon each time you come to Southwest Sydney, but so far the projects are incomplete.
We just found out the greatly-hyped Fifteenth Avenue upgrade is not a complete link to the Airport – it goes halfway and then it's a rat run for the rest.
The same with the rail. We need a one-seat trip to the city, not a trip interrupted by having to change trains at multiple stations. The world standard is an airport to city express. This is what we need.
A warning to all parties: stop giving Southwest Sydney promises for incomplete projects. Treat Southwest Sydney with respect. Make strategic announcements that provide the transport infrastructure we need if all the promises about jobs, growth and quality of life are to eventuate.
When WSIA is carrying more than 10 million passengers a year (by 2030) the current lack of road and rail connections from the Southwest will strangle the airport's ability to attract businesses and tourists, and will drastically limit Southwest Sydney's economic potential.
Should we simply stop building houses until the infrastructure catches up?
The sign we'd like to see between Leppington and Western Sydney International Airport.
