The West Connex Review released this week has been met with mixed responses. The review, which received 557 submissions incuding the parent’s associations of Annandale North public school and other local organisations.
“After more than four years of being ignored and fed lies by WestConnex and the NSW government, it is reassuring and a welcome relief that the Committee listened to us,” says Rhea Liebmann, a spokesperson for the Coalition against WestCONnex.
“This report should alarm all citizens of NSW, especially hundreds of thousands impacted by infrastructure projects. It reveals shocking evidence of unacceptable impacts on the quality of life and the health of communities. There was no consideration given to alternatives such as public transport before starting the project and the business case was established retrospectively. There has been a failure in consultation and complaints procedures, leaving residents helpless.
We welcome some of the findings but completely reject the first finding that WestConnex is: “…a vital and long-overdue addition to the road infrastructure of New South Wales. The committee supports complete construction, including Stage 3 and the Rozelle Interchange.”
“The NSW Gladys Berejiklian government has just granted a $3.9 billion contract to CPB a company that have been involved in all stages of WestConnex. This decision is a recipe for further disaster, and demonstrates the failure of good governance and transparency that we should be able to expect from a modern democracy,” said Liebmann.
The report suggests that while the project has many failings it would be too costly to halt the project now. This suggestion has been met with outcry as workers on the some parts of the project have ceased work because of unidentified gas leaks.