THE Treasurer, Michael Costa, is keeping alive a radical western Sydney fast-train proposal backed by a close friend, despite the Premier, the Transport Minister and the NSW Co-ordinator-General all condemning the proposal as a bad outcome for the city's commuters.
The Western FastRail is being persistently lobbied to top-level bureaucrats by Leighton Contractors and Michael Easson, the former secretary of the Labor Council, mentor to Mr Costa and a successful property developer, even though the Government has formally rejected versions of the same concept three times since 1998.
The Premier, Morris Iemma, publicly dismissed the latest proposal on March 18, the NSW Co-ordinator-General, David Richmond, again rejected it on June 24, and on July 30 at a press conference, the Transport Minister, John Watkins, repeated three times, "It does not stack up."
Despite this, Mr Costa held another meeting with Mr Easson two weeks ago, which he chaired, to keep the scheme alive.
The Western FastRail promises fast trains for Penrith and Parramatta commuters, but as it would quarantine sections of track needed by CityRail, dozens of transport experts have savaged the proposal because almost every other line would suffer reduced services and slower journeys.
"The proposal on Penrith has got to stack up," Mr Iemma said during his announcement of the $12.5 billion North West Metro line. "So far the work that has been done shows that it does not stack up, for a number of reasons.
"One is the cost that they estimate is not what we estimate. It is several billion dollars more … and if we accepted their proposal, trains coming from the Blue Mountains would end up being slower and less frequent. We are not going to do that … We think there is a better solution."
A top-level Government team discovered $2 billion in hidden costs. Penrith commuters who could not afford the extra $40 weekly fare would board trains that would take 84 minutes to reach the city instead of the current 48 minutes.
An investigation by the Herald has revealed that the original concept belongs to RailCorp's head of strategic planning, Barry Garnham, who until 2004 had a "commercial negotiated arrangement" over the project with Mr Easson and Leighton Contractors.
As a consultant on a retainer, he pitched the proposal to the Government in 1998 for Lend Lease, and he was involved behind the scenes in 2002 when Leightons and Mr Easson formally presented the idea to senior officials.
In 2005, and then again since May last year, Mr Easson has relentlessly lobbied the Government - including Mr Costa - about the proposal.
On July 30, the same day that Mr Watkins thrice repeated that the Western FastRail "does not stack up", Mr Garnham briefed RailCorp on a proposal for an underground railway running fast trains between Parramatta and the city with no stations between. Such a tunnel is a core component of the Western FastRail.
Senior officials are so concerned about Mr Garnham's history of advocacy of the project that he does not attend key meetings chaired by Professor Richmond about the north-west metro, limiting RailCorp's influence over the future direction of rail in NSW.
Mr Garnham told the Herald he would not receive any financial reward should the Government adopt the proposal. Asked about his relationship with Mr Easson and Leighton Contractors, he said: "It was a commercially negotiated arrangement that was terminated when I joined RailCorp in 2004."
Mr Costa refused to answer questions about the proposal from the Herald , saying he does not disclose cabinet business. Mr Costa has made no secret of his closeness to Mr Easson. In 2001, he said Mr Easson was "instrumental" to his career at the Labor Council, and remained "a close friend and influence".
Mr Easson, who runs a development group with an interest in property around train stations, said if the Government adopted the proposal it would go to a competitive tender.
"Mr Garnham has not been paid for this project nor is he entitled to any remuneration or success fees," he said.
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