3.0 CONSTRUCTION COST

3.1 Light Rail

• The strategic estimation of the relative cost of light rail confirmed the preference for a rapid busway system for the Liverpool - Parramatta Transitway that was indicated by patronage modelling. Various planning exercises contributed to the process of establishing a strategic order of cost for light rail:
  • Over the period 1996-98 the Department of Transport completed a pre-feasibility study of the Hoxton Park to Parramatta (SREP 18 south) public transport corridor. Excluding common cost elements, this indicated that the construction cost for light rail along this corridor would exceed the construction cost for a rapid busway by a factor of between 1.5 and at least 30, depending on operating environment (eg. exclusive corridor, shared roadway, etc).
  • The Public Transport Advisory Council, established to provide the Minister for Transport with independent advice on "community requirements for public transport", was asked by the Minister in late 1996 to prepare a "comprehensive report" on light rail. The resulting PTAC Light Rail Strategic Plan for NSW (prepared with the benefit of a special background review of international light rail systems) gives indicative capital costs for light rail development that range between $6.9 million and $28.3 million per kilometre depending on operating environment (1997 dollars, including passenger facilities but excluding fleet and land acquisition).
  • In the PTAC report, Hoxton Park - Parramatta was the one proposed light rail corridor for the Sydney region for which an indicative order of capital cost was not prepared. It was suggested that such an estimate await identification of a preferred alignment. Application of the pricing principles used in the PTAC Light Rail Strategic Plan (plus land acquisition costs) indicates an order of cost for at-grade light rail along the preferred Liverpool - Parramatta Transitway alignment of $750 million. This figure includes an allowance for light rail vehicles sufficient to deliver a 10-minute service frequency, and $45.5 million for land acquisition (see below).
  • This cost estimate does not include provision for commuter car parks, a parallel cycleway, electronic "real time" information and a comprehensive security system. It also does not allow for the provision of major station infrastructure. If these improvements are included, the cost of a light rail system that could offer the proposed rapid bus Transitway's level of service frequency and quality would be in the order of $800 million.

• The Liverpool - Parramatta Transitway strategic construction cost estimate is considerably more comprehensive that the PTAC's cost estimate for light rail. It includes provision for relocating and protecting existing utilities and services beneath and (where necessary) above and beside the facility. In addition, provision has been made for new services required for the operation of the Transitway such as street lighting, power to stations, etc. If these costs were included the construction costs for light rail would be higher than those discussed in section 3.1.

• Provision has also been made for a bikeway parallel to the Transitway, two commuter car parks, electronic "real time" passenger information, and a comprehensive security system. These items were not addressed in the PTAC's estimation of strategic costs for light rail development outlined above.

• The strategic construction cost estimate for a rapid busway provides for a pavement of arterial road specification. This would be required due to expected sub-grade condition, bus axle loadings, and any future need for light rail conversion. It is estimated that the construction-only cost variation between asphalt and plain concrete pavements is not more than 5%. An all-of-life costing, allowing for maintenance, indicates no cost difference between these two pavement types.

• While the minimum 7.2 metre "operating envelope" required for two-way light rail would be less than the width of a busway along the Liverpool - Parramatta Transitway corridor, any difference becomes less significant once bikeway, drainage, safety clearance, landscaping and lighting requirements have been included. Given that land acquisition for transport corridor construction typically requires whole lot initial purchase even when only part may be needed, the land acquisition cost difference between rapid busway and light rail along the Transitway corridor is estimated as negligible.

• The $198.1 million strategic construction cost estimate for the Liverpool - Parramatta Transitway is made up as follows:

All of the above findings indicate that, given short- and medium-term estimates of population growth in the Transitway service area, light rail will not be a viable option for the foreseeable future. Notwithstanding this position, it should be noted that the detailed environmental approval process now under way for the Transitway will, as is formally required, include an evaluation of alternatives for the project. This will allow the further assessment of the comparative performance of different operating scenarios including light rail.

Planning Group
NSW Department of Transport
July 1999