Australia is massive, with the country even being wider than the moon.
Large swathes of it are unpopulated by people, and places where Australians do call home can be spaced quite widely apart.
One of the country’s most impressive pieces of transport infrastructure is no exception.
Western Sydney Airport is on track to begin operations in 2026, the Aussie government says. The city already has an airport, which is located in Sydney near the coast.
But officials say the new project will be ‘transformational’, and ‘generate economic activity, provide employment opportunities closer to home for people in the Western Sydney region, and meet Sydney’s growing aviation needs’.
Bosses say demand is set to double over the next 20 years, and the airport will help city to meet this challenge, as well as ‘provide a source of jobs and economic growth for the region’.
The project encompasses nearly 1,800 hectares of ‘undulating’ terrain. Major necessary earthworks include the relocation of important structures like high-voltage powerlines, cemeteries and heritage sites.
The airport is being delivered by a government-owned company, Western Sydney Airport Co Limited (WSA Co). Australian ministers have committed up to $5.3billion.
The company was formally established on August 7, 2017.
Currently, the ‘preliminary design and environmental assessment’ phase for single runway operations is underway. A draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), including details of the preliminary flight paths, has also been released.
This examines the noise, social and environmental impacts of the airport’s proposed flight paths.
The new Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport metro railway is being built to connect communities and travellers with the new airport.
Officials say the 23km new railway will link residential areas with ‘job hubs’, including the new Bradfield Metro Station. The infrastructure is also expected to connect travellers from the new airport to the rest of Sydney’s public transport system.