VIDEO: The northwest Perth suburb of Alkimos has been tabbed as a future residential, retail and transport hub as part of the State Government’s Metronet passenger rail program.
Alkimos will be the first new train station on the Yanchep Rail Extension, a 14.5-kilometre addition to the Joondalup Line from the current terminus at Butler, to a new endpoint at Yanchep.
The state’s land agency, LandCorp, unveiled plans for a new community of 50,000 people at Alkimos, centred around the new station.
“Alkimos Central is set to become a key new Metronet precinct of the northern suburbs,” Premier Mark McGowan said. “It embodies all the wider aims of the Metronet program.”
McGowan said the development would provide a boost of around 15,000 jobs in the northern suburbs, including construction jobs and new employment opportunities in the new precinct.
“Metronet is more than an integrated public transport plan connecting Perth’s suburbs,” the premier continued.
“It’s also about creating communities where people can live and work, while being able to access services and public transport.
“The construction of the Metronet Yanchep Rail Extension is another part of our plan to promote employment opportunities and increase the number of people who work within the region.”
Transport and lands minister Rita Saffioti said the new station precinct will perform two functions: it will provide access to transport to local residents, and it will be a destination for people to visit, work and shop.
“It will feature a significant retail area, mixed density residential development, business and service industrial precincts, plus a civic and cultural zone,” Saffioti said. “There are also plans for district playing fields and an indoor recreation centre.”
The Yanchep Rail Extension is being delivered by the WA Public Transport Authority’s Metronet team. Metronet is the State Government’s long-term plan to connect Perth’s new and growing suburbs to rail, reducing congestion.
Construction is set to begin on the Yanchep Rail Extension in 2019, and on Thursday LandCorp said it would start work on the new Alkimos development in the same year.
WA’s Planning Commission recently approved the structure plan for Alkimos Central, a mix of residential, retail, recreational, entertainment and commercial developments on 212 hectares of land east of Marmion Avenue.
Alkimos station is expected to be operational in 2021.