Various railway lines have been proposed for Sydney, Australia, including both heavy rail extensions to the dominant suburban network, and more recently proposals for metro lines – one of which was completed in 2019. There have been various proposed light rail expansions, which are covered separately.
Pre-Bradfield Proposals Between the opening of the first railway in the Sydney area (Sydney-Parramatta, 1855) and the publication of the comprehensive Bradfield plan for expansion of the metropolitan railways, there were a number of other proposed railway schemes which did not proceed.
Planning in the early 1880s for the route of the first stage of the Illawarra railway considered a route continuing south from Kogarah, crossing the George's River at Taren Point, then turning southwest to climb the gradual slope from the river to Sutherland. Opposition to this route by Thomas Holt MLC, who owned most of what is now the urban part of Sutherland Shire meant the railway had to take an indirect route via Hurstville, which necessitated the high-level crossing of George's River at Como, and the steep climb from there to Sutherland.
Following the extension of the Belmore railway to Bankstown in 1909, it was intended to continue this line west in a direct line to meet the Main Southern line at Liverpool. Due to the rural nature of this area and the likely consequent low patronage levels, there was no great rush to construct this line. In the event, the railway was extended north rather than west in 1928, to connect to the Lidcombe-Cabramatta line, which had been opened as far as Regents Park in 1912 then extended to Cabramatta in 1924.
Bradfield railway scheme, 1920s
John Bradfield, engineer and designer of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, had a grand vision for Sydney's railway system that has only been partly fulfilled. After joining the New South Wales Public Works Department in 1891, he submitted a report in 1915 calling for the electrification of the suburban railways, a city underground railway and the Harbour Bridge. World War I led to the collapse of all three proposals, and it was not until 1922 that the Bridge Bill passed through parliament, and 1923 until the first sod was turned on the city railway.Spearritt, P. Sydney's Century: A History . Accessed 4 February 2008.
Bradfield's overall concept called for the construction of a network of underground city railway lines in association with the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and a new rail terminal, Central. A larger network of lines was proposed for the western, eastern and southern suburbs (see map) however most of these lines remained concepts only and have never been constructed. The Great Depression and later World War II, along with the growth of the motor car that led to the passenger numbers in Bradfield's plans being grossly overestimated, all prevented the full realisation of the Bradfield scheme. Parts of the city underground were constructed and exist as the present day City Circle, with small sections built for the additional proposed city lines such as additional platforms at Wynyard and St James stations which have never been used for heavy rail transport. The underground city loop was constructed originally as a stub line to St James, and the line through Town Hall and Wynyard to the Harbour Bridge. It was not until 1955 that the loop was completed by the construction of Circular Quay station. A line to the eastern suburbs was eventually built, but along a different alignment to that envisaged by Bradfield, who proposed a line along Oxford Street.
County of Cumberland Plan, 1948
This was the first comprehensive metropolitan land use and transport plan for Sydney's existing and proposed future urban areas. Its sponsoring body, the Cumberland County Council, did not have the statutory powers to implement the plan, and much of the scheme was frustrated by uncontrolled development and policy decisions of other government bodies. One such element of the County of Cumberland planning scheme which did not see the light of day were two circumferential railways, one from the Cronulla line at Mortdale to the East Hills line at Riverwood, and to continue this route, another line from Padstow to the Bankstown line at Bankstown. By the early 1960s, large parts of these routes had been built on (much by another government body, the Housing Commission) and, without tunnelling, became unimplementable.
Sydney Area Transportation Study, 1974
In 1968, the State Planning Authority of New South Wales released the Sydney Region Outline Plan, which was to guide the development of Sydney for the period 1970–2000. In particular, it aimed to develop new growth corridors to areas such as Green Valley, Campbelltown and Blacktown.Meyer, B. Future Sydney, a City of Cities. UWS. Accessed 26 October 2008. This was followed in 1974 by the Sydney Area Transportation Study which proposed several new rail lines in the new growth areas as well as several new lines to ease congestion in the established areas of Sydney.Gunn, J. Along parallel Lines, a History of the NSW railways 1850–1986. Melbourne University Press, 1989. The proposed lines were: a line linking Parramatta and Windsor via the Hills District, a line between Merrylands and Green Valley, a line to the Northern Beaches, including a new underground section through Crows Nest, the complete Eastern suburbs line to Kingsford, already under construction at the time but later truncated to Bondi Junction (opened 1979), an extension of the East Hills line from East Hills to Glenfield (later constructed and opened in 1987), an express line between Redfern and Parramatta, running parallel but north of the existing Main Suburban line, a line connecting the Bankstown line at Sydenham with Redfern via Mascot and Alexandria, with a possible future branch to Sydney Airport, an extension of the Carlingford line to meet the Main North line at Beecroft, with an intermediate station, a connection between the Carlingford line at Rosehill and Parramatta
The rail plans also involved significant duplication and quadruplication of existing lines. Despite extensive modelling, the vast majority of the proposals outlined were not constructed.
Eastern Suburbs Railway, 1960–1970s In 1967, the NSW government recommenced construction on the dormant Eastern Suburbs line that had been partly constructed and had lain dormant since 1952. The original proposal was for a line to Kingsford via Bondi Junction, Randwick and the University of New South Wales. In 1976, the project was curtailed to Bondi Junction, and the full line to Kingsford was not constructed.
MetroWest proposal, 1990 In 1990, the State Rail Authority undertook a feasibility study into the development of a new underground line along the western edge of the central business district. Called MetroWest, the proposal called for the construction of a new underground line between Redfern and Wynyard along the western edge of the CBD with a new underground station complex at Central station, new stations in the Haymarket and Market Street areas, and terminating at a remodelled Wynyard station. The proposal would include platforms suitable to fit longer InterUrban passenger trains from the Central and South Coasts and the Blue Mountains, running through the new line in lieu of terminating at Central.New Underground planned for Sydney's West. Network, the Railways of Australia Quarterly. Vol 27, no 4, October 1990. The line underwent a two-year feasibility study and the corridor remains protected for possible future development with planning buffers placed along the corridor in 2006, however plans presently remain unrealised. It was later realised that around $400 million was wasted after this proposal was cancelled.
Action for Transport 2010, 1998
In 1998, the NSW government released a position paper on various road and public transport projects to be delivered before 2010. The rail projects envisaged were:
the Airport line, already under construction at the time and completed in 2000 an extension of the Eastern Suburbs line to Bondi Beach, to be completed by 2002 the Parramatta Rail Link between Parramatta and Chatswood by 2006 a Hornsby to Newcastle High Speed Rail line to have started by 2010 a North West Rail Link between Epping and Castle Hill by 2010 a Sutherland to Wollongong High Speed Rail line by 2010 a Hurstville to Strathfield railway line to start by 2010 and be completed in 2014 a Liverpool 'Y Link' to start by 2010
Three projects were listed for consideration as additions after 2010:Sydney's Latest Transport Strategy: Action for Transport 2010. Transit Australia, Vol 54 No 2, February 1999. a line to the Warringah Peninsula an extended Eastern Suburbs line towards Maroubra an extension of the North West railway line towards Rouse Hill
Of these proposals, only the Airport line and the Epping - Chatswood section of the Parramatta Rail Link, which were already under construction or advanced planning, were completed in 2000 and 2009 respectively. The North West railway line from Epping to Rouse Hill would also later be completed in 2019 but as a Sydney Metro rapid transit system instead, utilising Epping - Chatswood section of the Parramatta Rail Link. However, most of the proposed roads and motorways outlined in the same paper have been constructed.
Bondi Beach railway In 1996, the NSW government proposed a privately funded extension of the Eastern Suburbs railway line from Bondi Junction to Bondi Beach. The final proposed version of the line would have seen a single track extension ending in a station under Bondi Beach park, with a premium (extra $2.50 proposed) added to ticket prices. The Bondi Beach Railway Company, a consortium of Lendlease and Macquarie Bank, proposed to build and maintain the railway at a cost of $197 million and to lease it to CityRail for a 30-year term, after which ownership would transfer to the State Rail Authority.Eastern Suburbs Railway Australasian Tunnelling Society, accessed 23 October 2008.Tax breaks revive Bondi branch Railway Gazette International February 2000 The proposal met with fierce opposition from local residents who were concerned with the loss of parkland, fare premium, and little potential use by residents.Bondi beach heavy rail Plan. Sydney Indie media, accessed 23 October 2008. After a degree of planning and gaining Federal Government backing, the proposal was dropped in 1999.Bondi Beach almost had a train station, but fear got in the way ABC News 3 May 2018
'Christie' proposals, 2001
In 2001, the Co-ordinator General of Rail, Ron Christie, released a report, the Long-Term Strategic Plan for Rail for Sydney, the Central Coast, Newcastle, the Illawarra, the South Coast and the Blue Mountains, which outlined the critical infrastructure that would need to be built between then and 2050 to ensure the long-term survival and operation of the CityRail network.Christie, Ron, "Long-term strategic plan for rail: overview report: Greater Sydney metropolitan region" – Chapter 4.4 , Action for Public Transport New South Wales, June 2001. Accessed 11 January 2007. Christie's report suggested that several "metro" lines should be built to service new areas and to relieve capacity on existing lines. In particular, Christie suggested lines:Christie Report . Action for Public Transport NSW, accessed 28 October 2008. between Cronulla and Miranda in Sydney's south to Dee Why on the northern beaches, via the airport, the CBD and North Sydney from Parramatta via Top Ryde or Olympic Park to the CBD via Drummoyne, with potential extension to the University of New South Wales and Sydenham from Hoxton Park to Parramatta and Castle Hill
Western FastRail