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A train line linking Campbelltown and Wollongong is one of the proposals pitched as part of a federal government push to improve rail services. Last month the federal government announced the Faster Rail prospectus, which comes with a $20 million pool to help fund projects that speed up rail services and improve job and housing opportunities. The Advertiser understands at least two proposals deal with the Illawarra. While the NSW government was planning on making submissions, earlier comments suggested the South Coast line would not be included. One group that has put forward an Illawarra/Campbelltown-linked proposal is the Centurion Group. For a few years now, the group has been very interested in the possibility of linking the Illawarra to western Sydney, with the view that a rail line would increase land values and encourage housing in that area. The government could use “value capture” – taking a portion of the improved land value – to fund the rail line. The Centurion Group’s Chief Operating Officer Annie Chatfield said the group had been working with Illawarra First on the South West Illawarra Rail Link – which would effectively be a combination of the Maldon-Dombarton freight line and a passenger line. “We’re saying we need to improve connectivity, particularly between Campbelltown and Picton as a first-off and then down through the Maldon-Dombarton and onto Wollongong,” Ms Chatfield said. “And at the same time looking at the [South Coast] line and try and do something to take the pressure off that, because there’s no redundancies at the moment.” Ms Chatfield said the first stage of the rail link – Campbelltown to Picton – would not be difficult to achieve. “It’s really simple in terms of connectivity, it’s only about eight kilometres to bring it through and then you’ve started the loop,” she said. Ms Chatfield said she was pleased the federal government had taken this step “because we seem to have had so many reports”.

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