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River Express Misses The Boat

The State Government’s new River Express service does nothing more than expand on the existing tourist service and offers little benefit to Western Sydney commuters.

“Parramatta City Council has been lobbying the State Government for a commuter ferry service to Parramatta from riverside suburbs of the inner west, as currently there is no fast, direct public transport from places like Drummoyne, Abbotsford, Cabarita and Meadowbank” said Parramatta City Council Lord Mayor, Councillor Paul Garrard.

“An effective commuter ferry service would need to pick up passengers along the entire route of the river from Drummoyne to Meadowbank as Parramatta’s commercial and cultural influence grows,” he added.

“While this new service will be welcomed by those travelling to the Sydney CBD, it fails to recognise Parramatta as one of the nation’s fastest growing city centres.

“The State Government needs to understand that Parramatta is not just a departure point, but an increasingly popular destination, especially for workers.”

Cr Garrard added that the lack of public transport options for commuters travelling from the inner west to Parramatta, meant more delays and trouble on our the city’s roads.

“The inner west riverside peninsulas have a significant amount of high density housing but with limited public transport choices traffic congestion is inevitable, as more people take to their cars,” Cr Garrard said.

“First the State Government cut the Parramatta Rail link at Epping, then the Cumberland Rail line from every 30 minutes to five trains a day and have refused to fund Council’s successful free bus, the Loop,” he said.

“Having an integrated transport network is vital to support our city’s growth and this includes an effective, efficient ferry service.”

Contact: Adam Leto

Phone: 9806 5083

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