The vision for Perth’s central suburbs revealed in a high-level government planning framework includes eight new river footbridges, a five-fold increase in cycle paths and a high-volume ferry service.

The Perth and Peel@3.5 million framework for the Central subregion reveals the councils of Perth, Victoria Park, Subiaco and Peppermint Grove will do the heaviest overall lifting to increase population density with targets to double, or even more than double, their existing numbers of homes within 30 years.

An artist's impression of the proposed Three Points Bridge in Perth. HASSELL

The other Central framework councils have been told to increase the number of homes in their areas by 25 per cent to 66 per cent – that is, Bassendean, Bayswater, Belmont, Cambridge, Canning, Claremont, Cottesloe, East Fremantle, Fremantle, Melville, Mosman Park, Nedlands, South Perth, Stirling, Subiaco and Vincent.

The state government framework sets out where councils should aim to plan for these future infill locations, as well as where the jobs and public utilities will go to service a population expected to almost double by 2050.

It also reveals where green space will be preserved, and which government departments have planned ahead - as well as where big question marks remain.

The framework flags:

Three new walk/cycle bridges over Swan River between Heirisson Island and Maylands

Three new walk/cycle bridges over Canning River between Salter Point and Waterford

Three Points walk/cycle Bridge connecting Chidley Point, Point Walter, Point Resolution

Higher-volume ferry service connecting Elizabeth Quay, East Perth, Claisebrook Cove, Stadium, Coode Street, Canning Bridge, Point Walter, Old Swan Brewery, University of WA

Off-road commuter cycle paths to increase fivefold from 172 kilometres to more than 850 (to be planned by local governments)

Significant widening for Orrong Road Welshpool, Charles Street North Perth and Ellen Stirling Boulevard Stirling to become major roads.

Long-term potential public transport routes including a Circle Line train connecting Joondalup, Fremantle, Thornlie, Armadale, Forrestfield, Midland, East Wanneroo, and “further investigation” for a South Perth train station.

This image overlooking Perth from the north-east shows how relatively flat the city remains, with few buildings over 10 storeys and only a handful of tall towers in the CBD proper. The couple of smaller towers visible in Northbridge are still under construction, and to the east, the new Westin Hotel sticks out prominently. Hamish Hastie

Where the infill goes

Central’s infill is divided into three types of areas: activity centres, urban corridors and station precincts.

There are about 50 activity centres, the biggest being the airport, Perth, East and West Perth, Stirling, Bentley-Curtin, Murdoch, Fremantle, UWA-QEII, Cannington, Morley and Burswood Peninsula (full list page 78 of the framework).

There are about 15 station precincts: Mosman Park and Victoria Street, Swanbourne and Grant Street, Loch Street and Karrakatta, Daglish and Shenton Park, Warwick, East Perth, Mt Lawley, Meltham, Bayswater, Burswood, Victoria Park, Carlisle, Queens Park and Bull Creek.

Click to reload

Activity centres will be zoned to encourage village-style development with a mix of parks, homes and businesses around major train stations. People living inside the boundaries (marked page 29) or within 400 metres of station precinct stations, can expect high- and medium-density redevelopment around them long-term.

Urban corridors are the roads linking these areas, and industrial areas, via high-frequency bus routes. They include sections of the Canning, Leach, Albany and Great Eastern highways; Riseley, South and Beaufort streets; Manning, Orrong, Wanneroo, Scarborough Beach and Guildford roads; and Alexander and Morley drives (full map page 33).

Eventually these road frontages will feature high-density apartments and commercial spaces, with medium density in between transitioning to low-density areas behind, as the picture shows.

Urban corridor concept. DPLH.

The plan is to allow greater housing diversity, street level activity and new business opportunities. The framework shows some artists’ impressions of potential long-term scenarios.

These are just pictures – each council is doing/will do community consultations as they update local planning laws - but councils must rezone to meet the infill targets the state’s set out.

Potential future urban corridors. DPLH.

After setting the targets in 2011, the state set interim ones from 2016 – and at 2016 only five of the 19 Central councils had exceeded or almost met these – Belmont, Claremont, Fremantle, Vincent and Cockburn. Those lagging the furthest behind were Peppermint Grove and Mosman Park, which met only 13 per cent and 18 per cent of their targets.

Where the jobs go

The Central subregion already provides 64 per cent of the total number of jobs in greater Perth.

The new jobs to be created in Central to 2050 will be on existing commercial land, and the activity centres, station precincts and urban corridors outlined above.

Potential future urban corridors. DPLH.

The activity centres expected to provide the most new jobs are Murdoch, Curtin/Bentley, Subiaco, Perth Airport and UWA-QEII. There is no room for new industrial land; the plan is to protecting existing industrial land from housing creep (Kewdale/Welshpool, Canning Vale, Balcatta, Ashfield, Osborne Park, Belmont, Riverton, Myaree, O’Connor and North Fremantle).

The industrial centres expected to provide the most new jobs are Kewdale/Welshpool, followed by Ashfield and then Canning Vale (more details page 79).

Perth’s new industrial areas will be covered in coming days. Sign up to WA Today's 'News Update' newsletter to receive each instalment of the Big Perth series delivered to your inbox.

Questions remain

The frameworks show relatively detailed planning for new power and water services.

Transport, Education and Health departments have undertaken some investigations of what spaces will be needed for transport, schools and hospitals. Studies are also underway to identify locations of new general and civil airports.

While the Central framework says there will need to be a major increase in public open space, significant new areas are not identified except as a component of activity centre developments. These will have public open space requirements as part of subdivision approvals. It appears planning is not yet underway for sport and recreation facilities, schools, prisons, police stations, Tafes, courts, child-protection facilities and cemeteries in the Central region.

WAtoday will this week reveal where infill, sprawl and jobs are planned for the other frameworks:

South (Armadale, Gosnells, Serpentine Jarrahdale, Cockburn, Kwinana, Rockingham, Mandurah, Murray)

North-west (Joondalup, Wanneroo)

North-east (Swan, Kalamunda, Mundaring)

Sign up to WA Today's 'News Update' newsletter to receive each instalment of the Big Perth series delivered to your inbox.