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Pippita

Pippita was a former railway station on the former Abattoirs Line in Sydney. The station opened on 4 October 1940, closed on 20 October 1995 and was demolished in 1996.

Suburban Double Deck Train at Pippita Station. Photo: Weston Langford

The current Olympic Park Line, which extends over the former Abattoirs branch, connects to the suburban Sydney Trains Network between Lidcombe and Flemington.

Pippita CityExpress

The Olympic Park Line operates as regular shuttle between Lidcombe and Sydney Olympic Park. Only during special events do trains operate between Central and Olympic Park.

Pippita CityExpress is a proposed service running on the existing Olympic Park Line with a minimum of 4 trains per hour including during off-peak.

Trains would start at Lidcombe, stopping at Pippita, Olympic Park, again at Pippita, and then become an express to Central via Strathfield.

The total journey time from Lidcombe to Central via Pippita CityExpress would be around 19 minutes.

Pippita station would be rebuilt on the Olympic Park Line near its former site between Pippita Street and Parramatta Road in Lidcombe’s north.

Access to Pippita would be from Pippita Street (off Birnie Avenue, Lidcombe), Centenary Place (off Courallie Ave, Homebush West/Flemington), and from the proposed Pippita Rail Trail.

P4 Carpark (Sydney Olympic Park)

A new multi-storey Park N Ride (Opal Card enabled) would also be constructed to replace the existing P4 Car Park at the Sydney Olympic Park Hockey Centre.

Access to the P4 Car Park would use the existing entrance off Edwin Flack Ave/Sarah Durack Ave (Olympic Park) and the conversion of the special events busway off the M4 Motorway.

Read more about the Pippita CityExpress proposal at EcoTransit. The Pippita CityExpress with a Park N Ride is also supported by the Sydney Alliance.

Preliminary consultation with stakeholders shows that there is enough rail capacity to run the proposed Park & Ride service, as well as sufficient demand from commuters to justify such a service.

The Pippita CityExpress and Pippita Rail Trail in Sydney Olympic Park

By removing cars from the M4/Parramatta Rd corridor between Olympic Park and the city, congestion on this stretch of road will be significantly reduced.  Furthermore, it will have flow-on effects even further West than Olympic Park, as reduced congestion closer to the city reduces the likelihood of traffic blockages backing up from Parramatta Road onto the M4 and affecting other traffic.

Sydney Trains service on the T7 Olympic Park Line at the former Pippita station site

Roughly 8000 people per day commute by car only from Western Sydney to the city.  A further 4000 travel by car and train (i.e. they already ‘park and ride’).

The PippitaCityExpress would primarily assist those who currently drive all the way to the city, providing them with a convenient way to leave their home by car but leave their car outside the city and avoid traffic on the CBD approaches by switching to the train.

A 1990s edition of UBD Sydney Street Directory with the former Pippita Station on Page 232

Pippita Street is currently a private road with access restricted to Parmalat Food Factory vehicles only.

Pippita Rail Trail

The former Abattoirs Line used two rail bridges to cross Parramatta Road and the M4 Motorway. The current eastern bridge (Up track) is now the Olympic Park Line and the western bridge (Down track) is current disused but in good condition.

The Pippita Rail Trail would connect Lidcombe and Olympic Park via Pippita forming a new Active Transport Corridor for cycling, walking, and running.

Pippita CityExpress and Pippita Rail Trail proposals combined. Image: Restore Inner West Line community action group

The Pippita Rail Trail would use the empty land immediately to the north and west of the Olympic Park Line as well as the Abattoirs Line’s Down track bridge.

Access to the Pippita Rail Trail would also be combined with entrances to the new Pippita station. Additional entrances to the Pippita Rail Trail would be at Bachell Avenue (Lidcombe) and next to the Place Management Centre/ P4 Carpark in Sydney Olympic Park.

Disused Abattoirs Line (Down track) bridge over the M4 Motorway along the public embankment behind/next to the Sydney Olympic Place Management Centre. Access however is at your own risk and photography of the Place Management Centre should be avoided.

The Pippita Rail Trail could also be extended towards Lidcombe station near or through the upcoming Lidcombe Rise apartment complex with upgrades to foothpaths.

The Olympic Park end of the Pippita Rail Trail also provides access to the extensive cycling network in Homebush Bay with links to Rhodes, Concord West, Strathfield, and Parramatta.

Bus Stop on Edwin Flack Avenue next to the Sydney Olympic Park Place Management Centre and a proposed entrance to the Pippita Rail Trail

Cumberland City Council received the Pippita Rail Trail proposal by Bruce Ashley and Andrew Moss on 19 August 2020 and resolved to investigate the feasibility of the project.

Update August 2022: NSW Government announces funding for Pippita Rail Trail

A new Pippita Station with the Pippita Rail Trail would also increase the amenity of the upcoming Carter Street Precinct in Lidcombe’s north near Sydney Olympic Park.

Please write to Transport and Planing Minister Rob Stokes, Auburn MP Lynda Voltz, Strathfield MP Jodi Mckay, Cumberland Council (Regents Park ward) and Parramatta Council (Rosehill ward) asking them to support the Pippita CityExpress and Pippita Rail Trail proposals.

Have Your Say

We would love to hear your thoughts on both proposals for Pippita. Please complete our online survey!

For more information and to get involved with Pippita, please email us at pippita@restoreinnerwestline.org.au

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Updated: 9 September 2020