Sydney Metro Western Sydney Airport

Not to be confused with: Sydney Metro West.

For other uses of Metro see: Metro (disambiguation).

Sydney Metro - Western Sydney Airport Line (formerly Sydney Metro Greater West or North South Rail Link) is a proposed infrastructure project that would link the Western Sydney Airport and Aerotropolis to the rail network. It will operate as part of Sydney Metro, and likely utilise similar rollingstock.

The line is expected to open along with the Western Sydney Airport in 2026. It has currently been confirmed to run between St Marys station and Western Sydney Aerotropolis^[1].

Description and History[]

Sydney Metro Oct 19 — Map depicting Sydney Metro Greater West with other metro lines.

CP0031-WSC-NSRL-SWRLE-map 03 — Map showing the "recommended corridors for the North South Rail Line and the South West Rail Link Extension."

MetroWesternSydneyAirportLineMap — Confirmed Sydney Metro Greater West map as of 1 June 2020

Sydney Metro Greater West is part of the "Western Sydney City Deal", an agreement between the state, federal and local governments signed in March 2018. The deal would see joint funding and coordination of various projects in the area including, but not limited to, the North-South rail link.^[2]

A scoping study was held between Nov 2015 and March 2018 to determine the "long-term need, timing, and service options for passenger rail to service both Western Sydney and its airport."[1] The report found a need for a "North-South" and "East-West" connection to the airport in order to "address congestion" and "growing demand for services" over the next 40 years. This North-South connection would stretch from Schofields to Macarthur, with interchanges at St Marys and the Aerotropolis.^[3]

The project was renamed the Western Sydney Airport Line in June 2020. More information was released at the same time, showing that construction on the line will start in late 2020. More stations and an approximate alignment were confirmed. St Marys to Orchard Hills and the area around the airport will be underground^[4], with the rest of the stations at ground level or on viaducts.^[5]

It is also stated in another scoping study released in June 2020 that the project will safeguard:^[5]

an extension north to Tallawong to St Marys via Schofields and possibly Marsden Park (to connect with heavy rail services on the Richmond branch and the Metro North West Line)
an extension south to Macarthur (to connect with heavy rail services on the Main Southern line) with possible stations at Oran Park and Narellan
an extension to the South West Rail Link to Glenfield via Leppington and likely Edmondson Park (with Leppington and Edmondson Park possibly being converted to metro stations) and a possible metro station at Rossmore
a future rapid bus network
the proposed East-West Link
the proposed extension of the South West Rail Link

A train stabling facility will be built for the line. It is proposed that this will be between the Warragamba pipeline and the M4 Western Motorway.^[5]