Southern Sydney Freight Line

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The Southern Sydney Freight Line (SSFL) is a railway line under construction in the south-western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. At present, a curfew for non-passenger trains operates in the Sydney suburban area during peak hours, restricting the movement of freight in Sydney to off-peak periods. The proposed line would form a dedicated corridor between Port Botany and Macarthur which would allow the movement of freight at any time. The line would allow greater efficiency in both commuter and freight services, and would form an important part in the development of the operations of Port Botany. The line will be managed by the Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC), who undertook the Environmental Impact Assessment in 2005, with an estimated budget of $175 million.

[edit] Design

Map of the Southern Sydney Freight Line corridor.
Yellow: Route constructed as part of the SSFL project
Green: Existing passing loop incorporated into the project
Grey: Existing Metropolitan Goods Railway Line

The line will consist of a 30 km single track running parallel to the Main South line between Sefton railway station and Macarthur railway station to separate goods trains from passenger trains, and provide direct access for freight services to Chullora, Enfield and Port Botany marshalling yards.

The line begins at Macarthur, running to the west of the existing tracks. It joins an existing passing loop between Ingleburn and Glenfield stations built as part of the Federal Government's One Nation infrastructure project in the early 1990s. Just north of Glenfield the line crosses over to the east of the existing tracks. The line continues to follow the Main South Line from Cabramatta to Sefton. At Sefton Junction, the line crosses under the Bankstown Line and joins the Metropolitan Goods Line.

[edit] Timeline

Approval was obtained in October 2008 and construction commenced in early 2009, focusing on the section between Sefton and Cabramatta with completion due in early 2010.^[1] By August 2009 construction was under way along the whole corridor. On 3 November, the ARTC deferred the project for at least 5 months due to more service relocation, changes to the signalling system could not occur until 2011 and changes in the design for cost purposes with the project already costing $309 million.^[2]

[edit] Noise concerns

Residents along the corridor between Liverpool and Casula Stations have been lobbying the ARTC, the NSW Government and the Federal Government over the issue of noise. They are demanding the construction of noise barriers along the corridor. Residents argue that the Southern Sydney Freight Line will increase noise levels due to the extension of the line’s operational hours and the nature of the new traffic. Existing traffic along the line consists largely of passenger services which operate under a curfew. Freight traffic is excluded at certain times during the day as well. The new freight line will allow freight movements at any time of the day or night with trains of up to 1.5 km in length.^[3]

State Member for Macquarie Fields Dr Andrew McDonald and Federal member for Werriwa Chris Hayes have both indicated their agreement with and support for the residents’ request in their respective Parliaments.^{[4] [5]} Liverpool City Council has also sided with the residents.^[6]

The ARTC’s position is that as they are in compliance with all existing environmental impact guidelines, they are not required to provide sound mitigation.^{[7] [8]}

[edit] See also

• Railways in Sydney
• CityRail
• CityRail Clearways Project
• Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program

[edit] External links

• ARTC Homepage
• Southern Sydney Freight Line Project Site
• Southern Sydney Freight Line Project ARTC Press Release
• CityRail Homepage

[edit] References

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