Residents in western Sydney are a step closer to boarding the long-awaited Parramatta light rail with trams passing through the area's CBD for the first time. The NSW state government says it's a milestone for the multi-billion dollar project, but local businesses say the construction phase has cost them dearly.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00 Slow and steady. The pace of progress. New light rail vehicles travel through Parramatta's CBD for the first time.
00:11 This is such an exciting day for Parramatta, an exciting milestone in delivering essential public transport services to the people of Western Sydney.
00:20 They're the first streetcars to travel through Parramatta since the old tram line closed in the 1940s.
00:26 The new line will run from Carlingford through the Parramatta CBD to the Westmead Hospital precinct.
00:32 We expect it to be done mid-year. Obviously that will depend on how much testing can take place and how successful that testing is.
00:40 But we're well within the final stages of this project being opened up to the public.
00:45 In a few months, these trams are expected to carry 16,000 people through the Parramatta CBD each day.
00:51 For many local businesses, that can't come soon enough.
00:55 Actually I own like three businesses around here and they're all suffering.
00:59 It's a bit of pain because people are expecting it's going to be started as soon as possible.
01:03 They've been giving us a day every month or every second month.
01:06 The Premier says he wants to learn from mistakes made during the project.
01:10 Yes you have to deliver this but we can't just treat family businesses as if they're collateral damage.
01:17 The state government says it's in conversation with businesses around possible compensation but owners say they're not optimistic.
01:24 Until now we've been waiting for some compensation but there's no hope.
01:30 Nobody's ever come to us about compensation, whether they're going to give us anything.
01:36 They're hoping their fortunes will turn around once the trams start rolling through for good.
01:41 Thank you.
01:43 [BLANK_AUDIO]