Newsroom

Sydney is edging closer to delivering one of its most significant active transport corridors to date, a continuous shared path linking the city with the rapidly developing Parramatta CBD.

While riding between the two centres is already popular, the existing route is fragmented—it’s interrupted by side streets, bridge crossings, awkward steps and inconsistent infrastructure. The proposed upgrade aims to change that, creating a largely uninterrupted 91-kilometre corridor stretching from Parramatta Park just west of the second CBD to the Sydney Opera House and Royal Botanic Gardens, tracing the Parramatta River and harbour foreshore.

Once complete, it will be the city’s longest continuous walking and cycling route, connecting 18 suburbs and forming one of Sydney’s most substantial transport links. Around 70 kilometres of the route already exists, leaving roughly 20 kilometres still to be finalised and delivered.

Backed by state government funding, Transport for NSW is planning the next stages of the link. This follows site work carried out in late 2024 and early 2025, with concept development underway in collaboration with local councils. Community consultation was completed in 2023 with overwhelming support for the project.

Beyond linking the two cities with a continuous path, the NSW government is touting a broader urban and public health initiative. They say the link is likely to encourage more walking and cycling by providing safer, more accessible infrastructure, improve connectivity through key growth areas along the route, and increase access to Sydney’s harbour and Parramatta River foreshore to both residents and visitors alike.

Those who have ridden the network of riverside paths will realise the economic benefits as well, it can be packed on weekends. The extra visitations are expected to further boost cafes, local business districts, education hubs and the various recreational destinations along the way.

For cyclists in particular, the completed link can’t come soon enough. The thought of a car-free corridor connecting Sydney’s traditional CBD with Parramatta, then on to the popular M7 Cycleway, plus the new M12 route, and it seems Sydney cycling is finally coming of age.