BAYSWATER Council is calling on the State Government to build a potential Morley Metronet station in the activity centre – rather than 3km away near Tonkin Highway.
The $1.6 billion project includes a train line from Morley to Ellenbrook, which aims to connect suburbs, reduce road congestion and meet future planning needs.
Stage one will deliver about 72km of new passenger rail and up to 18 new stations.
Get in front of tomorrow's news for FREE
Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion.
READ NOWThe Metronet team has identified five potential future stations in Whiteman, Bennett Springs, Malaga, Noranda and Morley – but the exact locations were yet to be determined.
According to a City officer’s report, officers were advised in recent conversations with the Metronet team that the preferred alignment was along Tonkin Highway, with the Morley station being about 3km from the Galleria Shopping Centre and the activity centre.
Councillors supported Cr Sally Palmer’s motion requesting the City to write to relevant State ministers and Morley MLA Amber-Jade Sanderson in effort to have the station located within the strategic metropolitan centre of Morley at the July 24 council meeting.
Cr Palmer said the Metronet team’s possible location for the Morley station to be about 3km away from the activity centre was not good enough.
“Every transport line by-passes Morley…we need it here,” she said.
“We have to put pressure on the State Government to have a Metrohub in the Morley hub.”
Deputy Mayor Chris Cornish said the project was a “one-off opportunity” to get it right so the City needed to be on the “on the front foot” in reflecting what the community and businesses wanted.
City community and development director Des Abel said officers had emphasised the importance of having the station in the Morley city centre with the Metronet team.
Station locations and concepts to be explored: Metronet team
A Metronet spokeswoman said the initial focus was to identify and evaluate potential alignments and mode combinations for evaluation in the business case.
“Potential station locations and preliminary station concepts will be explored, defined and refined as the business case progresses, however, a number of the options being considered include direct connections through the Morley Activity Centre (MAC),” she said.
“Subject to the findings of this work, it is possible this may be justified as part of a short-term project outcome or potentially as part of a future staged outcome.
“In addition to this, where options may not see the main trunk line operating directly through the MAC, consideration is being given as to how to best integrate the MAC into the proposed network, such as with enhanced land use development and cycling and bus corridor connections.
“Capital and operational cost, and project deliverability are some of the many considerations in determining the optimal alignment and station locations for the Morley-Ellenbrook Line.
“Given the current stage of project planning, it is too early to confirm the level of technical difficulty and funding required for each potential option.”
She said the team was consulting with key State Government agencies and affected local governments and planned to consult the community further as the project progresses in the coming months.