Back in October, we reported how secret NSW Government documents had been released revealing that the Parramatta Light Rail Project – the centrepiece of the Government’s plans to cement Parramatta as Sydney’s second central business district, as well as facilitate the building thousands of apartments around Sydney Olympic Park – had experienced a massive cost blowout “to more than $3.5 billion – $2.5 billion above what has been budgeted” and the benefits are unlikely to meet the costs.
We also noted how the NSW Government had tried to suppress the release of documents relating to the controversial $2.1 billion CBD and eastern suburbs light rail project, whose costs had also blown-out by over $500 million due to an incomplete business case, and was thoroughly rubbished in a damning NSW Auditor-General assessment. It was also revealed at the time that because of Sydney’s manic immigration-fuelled population growth, the light rail project will have 1,000 more people wanting to use it than its capacity when it finally opens in 2019.
