The City of Canning was disappointed the Perth and Peel 3.5 million report failed to place an emphasis on light rail and the Thornlie to Cockburn Central heavy rail line.
The report, released in May for public comment, outlined how Perth would accommodate 3.5 million people by 2050.
The central Perth area, encompassed by the cities of Canning, Bayswater, Stirling and Fremantle, was expected to grow from about 783,000 residents in 2011 to 1.2 million by 2050.
In the report’s south metro planning framework a Nicholson Road and Canning Vale station connecting the Thornlie line with the Mandurah line was proposed for completion by 2025.
The line wasn’t mentioned in the central planning framework despite the Canning Vale station falling within the central metro area.
In response to the report City of Canning officers said it was disappointing to not see the provision of the Canning Vale station in the central planning framework.
“The city considers that the simple inclusion of this rail line as a ‘future passenger railway’ would provide certainty to the city and the community,” the officers said.
The officers also noted several light rail projects identified by the state government in the past were not included in the planning framework either.
“The city is disappointed that future light rail linkages have not been identified at all in the (framework) despite their similar inclusion in the draft public transport plan for Perth in 2031,” the officers said.
“The City of Canning is interested in the possibility of a light rail link extending from Curtin University to Cannington train station.
“The Curtin to Canning bridge link is, however, missing from the (framework).
“Furthermore the ‘knowledge arc’ light rail route is also not identified despite its inclusion in the draft public transport plan for Perth in 2031.”
The city also raised concerns about the High Road industrial area in Willetton as an industrial centre to be preserved.
They recommended the area be removed from identification as an industrial centre and included as a potential activity centre given the commercial and mixed use of most of the businesses operating there.
The city was also working on a joint response to the report with the City of South Perth, Town of Victoria Park and Curtin university regarding light rail.
Submissions for the draft report close at 5pm on July 31. For more information visit www.planning.wa.gov.au/3_5million.
