Redfern & NSW Long Term Transport Master Plan – Exhibition Until 26 Oct

NSW Long Term Transport Master Plan sets the direction for
transport planning for the next 20 years, providing a framework for transport
policy and investment decisions that respond to key challenges. It is on
exhibition until 26 October 2012.

Below REDWatch has extracted key quotes from the report that
mention or impact Redfern Station and Arterial Road Corridor. There is much
else that impacts generally on Redfern. Here we only have covered places where
Redfern gets mentioned in the Draft Masterplan.  The link to the full report is at the foot of
this page.

Redfern Station

3.8 Seamless interchanging (pages 67-68)

Action: Modern, integrated and
customer-focused interchanges

Opportunities exist to improve the design, management and
operation of interchanges to give regular public transport users more
comfortable and pleasant journeys, as well as encouraging more people to
travel by public transport.

We will take a number of actions to target future investment
in interchanges:

  • We will upgrade existing Sydney CBD interchanges, build
    new interchanges and improve the precincts adjacent to these interchanges.
    Upgrades will be considered for Wynyard, Town Hall, Redfern and Central
    Stations, as well as Circular Quay. These projects will contribute to the
    creation of attractive, safe pedestrian friendly urban precincts throughout the
    CBD (see Chapter Four).
  • Our Interchange Strategy will set the direction for
    improving the management and delivery of interchanges. The Strategy will
    identify how interchanges are planned, where they are placed, how they are
    funded and how they are managed and maintained. The Strategy will also consider
    Park and Ride requirements.
  • We will apply consistent design principles and
    guidelines for the urban design of interchanges. These principles will help
    create active, vibrant, multipurpose interchange environments that
    integrate with surrounding areas.
  • To improve interchanges in line with
    customer needs and expectations, we will continue to plan, prioritise and
    develop business cases for investment in interchanges to close any gap between
    current and proposed service standards.
  • An integrated service delivery operating model will be
    developed to manage interchanges more effectively, including a model of
    ownership and maintenance that clearly articulates accountability for end to
    end management of interchanges. A draft model is illustrated in Figure 3.3.

Easier entry points to the public transport system

Public transport customers use a variety of modes including
non-public transport modes as part of an overall trip. For many customers
interchanges are an entry point to the public transport system. Improving
interchanges to facilitate easier entry into the public transport system plays
an important role in transport experience of customers. Figure 3.4 outlines the
many functions and characteristics of interchanges, including convenience,
amenity, information and access to a range of modes.

The Transport Access Program invests and delivers targeted
works at interchanges, stations and wharves. These changes will facilitate
easier entry points to the public transport system for customers. In addition
to the program, easier entry to the public transport system can be supported by
strong urban design around interchanges and the strengthening of walking links
and cycling links to interchanges.

Transport Access Program (Page 68)

The Transport Access Program delivers accessible, modern,
secure and integrated transport infrastructure where it is needed most. This
includes station upgrades, better interchanges, ferry wharf upgrades and
commuter car parks. Over the next four years, more than $770 million will be
invested in the Transport Access Program.

The Transport Access Program integrates planning and
delivery of targeted works aimed at providing:

  • Stations that are accessible to the disabled, aged
    people and parents with prams
  • Modern buildings and facilities for all modes that meet
    the needs of a growing population
  • Modern interchanges that support an integrated network
    and allow seamless transfers between all modes for all customers
  • Safety improvements including extra lighting, help
    points, fences and security measures for car parks and interchanges
  • Signage improvements so customers can more easily use
    public transport and transfer between modes at interchanges
  • Other improvements and maintenance such as painting,
    new fencing and roof replacements.

The first round of funding will see improvements at over 35
locations. The second round of funding will build nine new commuter car parks,
providing more than 1,200 additional car spaces at train stations across the
Sydney Trains network.

Further planning and design work will identify future
projects through evidence-based criteria including current and future
patronage, the needs and demographics of customers, whether important services
such as hospitals or educational facilities are nearby, and the accessibility
of other nearby transport interchanges and facilities.

In the five and ten year periods beyond 2014-15 the Transport Access Program will continue to focus
on a combination of major transport infrastructure upgrades and smaller
tailored projects. The investments made under the Program will reflect the
actions outlined in the Long Term Transport Master Plan, and so decisions will
reflect the service standards defined by the Strategic Transit Network and will
align with major investment programs such as Sydney’s Rail Future.

[Second Harbour Crossing] (p132)

Action: Second Sydney Harbour rail crossing, new CBD line
and new CBD stations

The centrepiece of the modernised rail system will be a new
Sydney Harbour crossing and CBD line that will connect Redfern to Chatswood via
the CBD. We will soon commence the development of the concept for the second
Harbour crossing. The new CBD line and Harbour crossing will improve access and
connectivity for the North Shore Line, Epping to Chatswood Rail Line and North
West Rail Link, and will improve travel times and capacity through the city
from the north and south. It will provide the largest increase in capacity to
the Sydney rail network for 80 years. New stations will relieve pressure on
Central, Wynyard and Town Hall Stations.

Upgrading Busy CBD interchanges (p 157)

Potential upgrades to existing interchanges and new
interchanges offer the opportunity to improve the quality of our customers’
travel experiences, and create attractive centres and precincts for
pedestrians.

Town Hall/Mid Town
– The redevelopment of Town Hall Station to accommodate more rail passengers is
an early-stage concept that would include a bus interchange which may form part
of the development of a light rail line on George Street. This work could
integrate with the City of Sydney’s proposal to create Town Hall Square.

Circular Quay Station
– Bus, rail and ferry passengers all converge on Circular Quay Station. The
station will be upgraded to improve wayfinding and layout to enable easier
interchanging between ferry, bus, rail and taxi. The upgrade will involve
better integration with private water transport providers and an interface with
the George Street light rail line.

Wynyard Station
In the long term, Wynyard Station will need a comprehensive and multi- modal
upgrade to better accommodate rail and bus passengers interchanging at the
station and Barangaroo. The upgrade will link with a Wynyard Precinct Bus
Improvement Project that will improve efficiency and bus interchange and
layover options. The removal of the toll plaza on the Harbour Bridge will
provide an opportunity to consider better uses of the space such as for bus
priority and layover.

Central Station
A comprehensive and multi-modal upgrade would encompass and integrate trains,
coaches, taxis, buses and light rail. The rail network efficiency program
provides opportunity to streamline rail services to Central. The implementation
of Sydney’s Rail Future and construction of light rail will enhance the role of
the Station and possibly require an upgrade to better integrate with
surrounding transport infrastructure. A new light rail interchange may serve
new light rail lines. The upgrade would alleviate overcrowding on some
platforms and pedestrian congestion in the passenger terminal at peak times.
Wayfinding would be improved within and outside the station.

Wynyard precinct bus
improvements
– Actions to improve bus system operations and reduce delays
in the Wynyard precinct in the short term (up to two years), with capacity to
meet medium term needs (10 years), include changes in the way York, Druitt and
Clarence Streets are managed; changes to bus routing; increased kerbside bus
stops; and utilisation of the Sydney Harbour Bridge toll plaza area to provide
bus layover and possible bus stops.

Redfern Station
A comprehensive and multi-modal upgrade would address station access and
connectivity issues, including access within and to the station, safe and
convenient interchange with bus, pedestrian and cycle routes, and accommodating
a corridor for expansion of the CBD rail network.

Barangaroo ferry hub
– We will design and construct a new ferry hub at Barangaroo. Initial modelling
and analysis of requirements indicates that two ferry wharves (four berths)
will satisfy forecast patronage at 2021 and beyond. The hub will provide
convenient access to the western edge of the CBD for ferry passengers, help to
reduce congestion on other modes and relieve pressure on transport
infrastructure at Circular Quay.

Growing & Improving CBD Transport (p159)

Short Term (p159)

Wynyard Station upgrades

Wynyard Station will be upgraded by undertaking rail
efficiency works, including a ticketing gate upgrade to accommodate Wynyard
Walk, de-cluttering and better signage. The CityRail timetable will be
updated to provide simplified services and more off-peak/shoulder services.

Medium term (p159)

Upgrading city interchanges

We will plan for upgrades to develop key city interchanges
including Town Hall, Central, Redfern, Wynyard and Circular Quay (see box on
page 157).

Longer term (p159)

Second Harbour crossing and CBD rail line

In the longer term, Sydney’s Rail Future will bring about a
second Harbour crossing and CBD rail line, serving trains from the North West
Rail Link through to the converted line to Bankstown and Western Sydney. This
initiative is described in the section on Sydney’s Rail Future (4.7.1).

What will be done? (p163)

A number of ways to improve the city centre’s transport
future are proposed:

  • The commitment to a new rapid transport line through
    the city, linking with the rest of the rail network as announced in Sydney’s
    Rail Future. The new rail line could have either an eastern or western
    alignment.
  • A light rail line for George Street, subject to ongoing
    feasibility work through the Sydney Light Rail Strategic Plan.
  • A bus plan for all bus routes to and through the CBD,
    based on the concept of through, near-side and mid-city service destinations.
  • More Metrobus services to reduce city centre bus
    layover and cater for cross-regional trips.
  • Managing competition for limited road space in a
    smarter way.
  • Upgrades to Circular Quay, Wynyard, Town Hall, Central
    and Redfern Stations.
  • A ferry terminal at Barangaroo.
  • Using road space gained from the removal of the Sydney
    Harbour Bridge toll plaza to improve transport operations in the northern city
    centre.
  • Investing in the cycle network.

Possible projects to enhance interchange amenity in the
Sydney City Centre are shown in Figure 4.57.

We will work with stakeholders including the City of Sydney,
residents and business to implement transport initiatives.

[REDWatch Note – There is no mention in the forward planning
document of any work on a Station in Waterloo as proposed by Council in its
response to RWA’s BEP2]

Transport Corridors p86

The six corridors already experiencing high constraint …[include]:

Sydney Airport to the
CBD
– The corridor linking Sydney Airport to the CBD is one of Sydney’s
most important. This corridor is serviced by a Motorway link (Southern Cross
Drive/Eastern Distributor), an arterial road network that provides access to
Redfern, Central Station and the southern end of the CBD, and the East Hills
Rail Line that connects the Airport to Central Station and the City Loop.

Southern Cross Drive currently operates at capacity during
the morning peak period with a V/C ratio exceeding one and average speeds of 35
km/h. Due to congestion on the Eastern Distributor, traffic diverts onto the
adjacent arterial road network including O’Riordan and Bourke Streets which are
also congested. The Airport Rail Line is approaching seated capacity between
Green Square and Central.

Increasing activity at Sydney Airport, population and
employment growth in the South Sydney and Airport areas (including Green
Square) and higher traffic along strategic connections to the South West Growth
Area, including the M5, will place increasing pressure on this corridor.

Travel demand between the Airport and the CBD is forecast to
grow to 24,000 by 2031 for the morning peak, an equivalent of six lanes of
traffic or 25 train loads. Managing this growing demand within and alongside
this strategic corridor will be essential to securing Sydney’s future economic
growth and success.

Traffic to and from the Airport mixes with through traffic
to and from the CBD. A solution for the corridor must address both
types of traffic.

Figure 4.9 Sydney Airport to the CBD  constrained corridor

Around Redfern, volume to capacity, 2011 and 2031 ‘do
minimum’ scenario

                                                            2011                2031

Car – Southern Cross Drive                  1.04                 1.10     p86

Car – O’Riordan St                                1.11                 1.02     p86

Car – Elizabeth Street                          0.59                 0.69     p86

Rail – Green Square – Central              0.97                 1.60     p86

Rail – Macdonaldtown – Redfern          0.98                 1.31     p88

Trips to the Airport (p119)

Travel demands associated with Sydney Airport continue to
grow. At present, around 100,000 trips are made every weekday to and from the
Airport. Roughly one third (36 percent) of these trips start in the CBD and
inner Sydney, with the next greatest proportion of travellers (13 percent)
coming from the North Shore/Northern Beaches. The majority of these travellers
must pass along the Airport to CBD corridor to reach the airport.

Activity at Sydney Airport is forecast to double over the
next 25 years: from 40 million trips each year to 79 million trips. This means
that airport traffic by itself will have a major impact on the corridor, before
any other growing demands are taken into account – such as travel from Sydney’s
South West to the CBD or an increase in freight bound for Port Botany.

4.5 Providing transport to a growing CBD p115

While Sydney’s CBD is growing, so too is the overall
footprint of high volume activity and high density living across Sydney City
and the Global Economic Corridor. New growth in areas to the immediate west,
north, south and south east of the CBD are creating opportunities to expand
cultural, leisure, tourism and economic activity.

The growth into these places is predominantly in the form of
infill developments mostly situated within existing transport and other
supporting infrastructure. But the expansion of the central Sydney footprint
will also create challenges alongside opportunities. Travel demand patterns
will grow and change as more people choose to live and work in these areas.

Figure 4.39 shows the forecast population and jobs growth
around the central city to 2031. This development includes the intensification
of jobs in Randwick (30 percent growth) and the Port Botany precinct (34
percent growth). It also shows the increase in employment based on the urban
renewal areas of Barangaroo, Green Square and Redfern-Waterloo.

[REDWatch Note – While this is the only reference to Redfern
& Waterloo in the growth section text, Figure 4.39: Precincts with forecast
significant population and employment growth between 2011 and 2031 in Central
Sydney shows Darlington & West Redfern along with East Chippendale as
Growth Precincts. The proposed redevelopment of Redfern and Waterloo Public
Housing or Ashmore Estate are not shown as a Growth Precinct on this map which can be seen on page
116 of the Master Plan or in the extract on REDWatch at TNSW Precincts with
forecast significant population and employment growth between 2011 and 2031
.]

Source: The draft NSW Long Term
Transport Master Plan
On Exhibition Until 26 October 2012.

Sections referencing Redfern and Waterloo Referenced above
can be found in

Submissions can be made in forms on the Chapter Summaries – These are quite hard to find so we have provided the links to the places to make your on line submissions below.

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