Raising public transport fares, selling or redeveloping hundreds of state-owned properties and overhauling road levies and taxes are among measures being considered to secure $7 billion in annual savings by the end of next decade to avoid a blow-out in NSW's transport costs.

A Transport for NSW "reform program" prepared for the state's Cabinet and obtained by the Herald using freedom of information laws also reveals the agency is proposing ways to cut up to $1.9 billion a year from staff costs within 10 years.

The "sensitive" documents, dated March this year, lay out the stark choices to be confronted by transport authorities and the state government: more money than ever is being spent on transport services, but what the government recoups from fares and other charges is not keeping pace.

The cost to the government of transport services is surging. Credit:Peter Rae

They show Transport for NSW wants to continue to increase service levels, but is also under pressure to find billions in savings over the longer term.