Western Sydney transport corridors changed, Cobbitty to get tunnel instead of highway

After months of community backlash, the New South Wales Government has announced it will scrap and alter parts of its proposed Western Sydney corridors to be reserved for future road projects.

The number of properties set to be acquired in Greater Western Sydney will drop from 1,247 to 825, with the number of homes affected down to 200.

Residents of Sydney's south-west have cautiously welcomed the announcement as it also means the building of a tunnel instead of ploughing a highway through local towns.

The village of Cobbitty, near Camden, has a sleepy atmosphere that locals worried would be ruined by the proposed M9 Outer Sydney Orbital, which would have cut straight through their main thoroughfare, Cobbitty Road, and run close to the heritage-listed property, Denbigh.

Now there will be a 10-kilometre tunnel from Cobbitty to Cawdor through Brownlow Hill, Grasemete and Ellis Lane.

Reverend David Barrie from the Outer Sydney Orbital Macarthur Action Group said it was good news that Cobbitty would be bypassed, but wanted more information about where the tunnel entrance would be located.

"The initial proposal was going to cut right through Cobbitty village," he said.

"We were concerned about traffic, we were concerned about freight … it was the noise, it was the traffic, it was the pollution."

He said although the village is missed, the tunnel still comes out in the Cobbitty Valley and "it looks like they're going to cut right through the Cobbitty Hills and run straight past the historic Denbigh homestead".

"We're about 80 per cent of the way … there are a lot of improvements being made but there's still some further refinements to be made."

The tunnel will start at the north of Cobbitty Rd and run to the south-east of Cawdor Rd, Cawdor.

Government acting on 'significant' community feedback

The Minister for Western Sydney Stuart Ayres said the Government had listened to residents' concerns.

"Over the last eight weeks we've had significant amount of community feedback," Mr Ayres said.

"It's crucial that we plan for the future and it's also crucial that we bring the community with us.

"We pay the price every single day in Sydney for not having this conversation in the past."

The Government will return to the gazetted corridor for the Bells Line Road Castlereagh Connection, and will abandon plans for a corridor from Castlereagh to Kurrajong Heights.

A section of the Outer Sydney Orbital north of Richmond Road will also be relinquished while the Government talks with local councils and the Department of Planning and Environment about potential alternatives.

Transport and Infrastructure Minister Andrew Constance said the Government would set aside $100 million for property acquisitions over the next two years.

He said there would be "one-on-one" discussions with affected property owners.