local - 2026-05-22

Northern Beaches Council Demands Metro Rail and Bus Priority as Transport Review Deadline Looms

Northern Beaches Council has put the NSW Government on notice, lodging a comprehensive submission to Transport for NSW's (TfNSW) Northern Beaches Network Review and calling for bold, long-term investment to address what it describes as a transport network under serious and growing strain. The submission, released on 20 May 2026, supports the Review as a necessary starting point but argues it falls well short of the transformative action the community needs.

Northern Beaches Council has put the NSW Government on notice, lodging a comprehensive submission to Transport for NSW's (TfNSW) Northern Beaches Network Review and calling for bold, long-term investment to address what it describes as a transport network under serious and growing strain. The submission, released on 20 May 2026, supports the Review as a necessary starting point but argues it falls well short of the transformative action the community needs. At the heart of Council's submission is a call for a mass transit solution — specifically, the investigation of a Metro rail line connecting the Northern Beaches to Dee Why and Brookvale. Council also called for improved bus priority measures, including dedicated bus lanes and more reliable services for areas north of Mona Vale that remain poorly connected to the broader network. Active transport improvements, including grade-separated cycle paths and the identification of missing or unsafe links, were also flagged as priorities. Mayor Sue Heins was direct in her assessment of the situation, pointing to the compounding pressure of state government housing reforms that are set to increase residential density across the...