Sydney <> Parramatta - fast rail

[ozbob]

Daily Telegraph --> $3 billion high-speed underground train will go from Parramatta to the city in less than 20 minutes

A HIGH-speed underground train connecting the CBD to Parramatta in under 20 minutes is set to be a reality within a decade, with today's state Budget reserving $3 billion in funding for the major transport project.

It is the first time money has been set aside for the construction of an ambitious project that's been talked about for more than 15 years.

The Budget will also immediately invest $28 million to finish the final business case for the project by the end of this year, on which the full funding is contingent.

"We're getting on with the job as quickly as possible," Premier Gladys Berejiklian said.

The Metro West is the single biggest public transport solution ever built for Western Sydney, and will offer a turn-up-and-go fully underground service.

"This is a super train for three million people in Western Sydney," Transport Minister Andrew Constance (pictured right) said.

"It will absolutely smash the travel time between Parramatta and the Sydney CBD via Olympic Park to less than 20 minutes."

Mr Constance said the government intended to expedite the build of the project.

"We are committed to real transformation for Western Sydney public transport and Sydney Metro West will actually deliver that."

The government intends construction to start at the beginning of 2020, and the completion of the project is forecast to take around five years.

Until now, previous comments about the Metro West have suggested it was still decades away.

The Metro West will have the capacity to move 46,000 people an hour — almost double the 26,000 commuters the current train line can move in the same period.

Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the Metro West was a landmark project.

"The Sydney CBD and Parramatta are two great economies and reserving this funding means we are bringing forward the work, subject to an accelerated business case, to better connect these two cities," he said.

"The government is making this project a reality."

The route has been slated to link the Sydney CBD to Parramatta and Westmead via The Bays Precinct and Sydney Olympic Park.

Work is underway to determine other stations along the route.