By Kylie Stevens For Daily Mail Australia
Published: 23:27 GMT, 3 March 2019 | Updated: 23:31 GMT, 3 March 2019
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Sydney's west could have more train services and slashed travel times to the city sooner than frustrated commuters thought.
Construction on the Metro West line connecting Sydney CBD and Parramatta could be fast-tracked to begin in 2020, a year earlier than originally planned when the project was first announced in late 2016.
The underground rail project will have the capacity to move 46,000 commuters an hour, almost double the 26,000 passengers the current line can move in the same period.
Travel times between Sydney's CBD and Parramatta would be slashed to just 20 minutes.
A limited stations trip on the gridlocked Western Line from Parramatta to the city currently takes an average 30 minutes and more than 40 minutes on all stations services.
The Metro West project can't come soon enough for frustrated train commuters who currently use the congested Western Line to travel to work each day
The New South Wales government announced it will fast-track construction on the Metro West to start next year if it's re-elected for a third consecutive term on March 24.
'We have worked our guts out to get the budget in a strong position and now we are able to deliver crucial rail projects like Metro West quicker than anyone thought was possible,' NSW Premier Gladys Berejikilian said.
'This crucial project will reduce the journey between Parramatta and the city to around 20 minutes, with trains running every two minutes.'
Transport minister Andrew Constance added: 'You can't build it any quicker, even if you tried.'
