Parramatta Light Rail Stage 1 has been awarded Australian Good Design Award Gold in the Built Environment category, marking a watershed moment for integrated infrastructure design in Australia. The 12-kilometre project, delivered by COX Architecture and CONTEXT Landscape Architecture with engineers WSP and Aurecon, demonstrates how transport infrastructure can transcend its traditional boundaries to become a powerful agent of urban renewal.

Celebrated by the awards jury as “a project that redefines what infrastructure can be: not just transport, but transformation,” the light rail represents the next chapter in the evolution of Sydney‘s geographic centre, embedding public, environmental and cultural value at every stage of its delivery.

At the heart of the project’s innovation is the creation of new green corridors, most notably a planted light rail route—the first of its kind in Australia. This standout feature, which has already secured the 2025 AILA Excellence Award, exemplifies a softer, more responsive approach to infrastructure design that prioritises environmental and human outcomes alongside transport efficiency.

“Our team has proudly contributed to the delivery of transport infrastructure, together with a new walking and cycling path, well designed public spaces, greener streets, pedestrianised dining precinct, new trees and a revitalised city centre,” said Hamish Dounan, Director at CONTEXT. “This project sends a clear signal for urban renewal in Sydney’s geographic centre and the transformative legacy of landscape architecture.”

The planted corridor introduces a paradigm shift in how Australian cities can approach light rail development. By integrating lawn and vegetation directly into the track system, the design achieves multiple urban objectives: reducing urban heat island effects, managing stormwater naturally, preserving existing trees and creating shaded, walkable infrastructure that enhances the public realm. The jury specifically commended this approach for “broadening the application of light rail in the Australian context, supporting the perception of the low impact, embedded nature of this transport mode.”

The project’s significance extends well beyond its environmental credentials. Parramatta Light Rail Stage 1 represents a holistic reimagining of how major infrastructure projects can catalyse comprehensive urban transformation. The 12-kilometre corridor delivers not just efficient transport, but a fundamentally revitalised public domain that reshapes the experience of the city.

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“Perhaps more than any other type of project, light rail is a true form of urban transformation,” said Ian Connolly, Director at COX Architecture. “Light rail changes the way people move and directly improves public domain—fully embedding it into a city’s legacy. It’s a bold piece of urban placemaking that builds on Parramatta‘s unique identity.”

The design’s subtlety in ground treatment and integration of track, lawn, planting and hardscape creates a cohesive urban experience. New pedestrianised dining precincts activate the streetscape, while improved walking and cycling paths encourage active transport. The project’s commitment to inclusive, accessible design ensures these benefits are shared across the community.

The jury particularly commended the project’s commitment to working in collaboration with local First Nations communities, recognising that genuinely transformative infrastructure must engage with and honour cultural contexts. This approach ensures the light rail corridor doesn’t simply pass through Parramatta, but becomes meaningfully embedded in its identity and ongoing narrative.

Rachel Wye, Managing Director of Good Design Australia, noted: “The projects awarded this year show how thoughtful design can drive meaningful change—from the way we live and work to how we care for our planet.”

The jury’s assessment described Parramatta Light Rail Stage 1 as “a timeless, rigorous urban design project, that will clearly benefit its community for the long term.” This recognition of the project’s enduring value speaks to the design team’s success in creating infrastructure that transcends its immediate functional requirements to deliver lasting urban quality.

The project achieves this through meticulous attention to detail across multiple scales—from the citywide structure of new green corridors to the human experience of ground plane treatments and shade provision. By maintaining design rigour throughout a complex delivery process involving multiple stakeholders and contractors, the team has produced infrastructure that feels considered, coherent and complete.

As a “powerful example of world-class design,” Parramatta Light Rail Stage 1 establishes a new benchmark for how Australian cities can approach major infrastructure projects. Its success demonstrates that transport infrastructure can simultaneously advance multiple urban agendas: mobility, sustainability, public realm quality, cultural recognition and community wellbeing.

For the growing cities of Western Sydney and beyond, the project offers a compelling model for infrastructure-led transformation that prioritises landscape architecture and public domain design as core strategic drivers rather than cosmetic additions. In doing so, it charts a path toward more liveable, resilient and beautiful cities.

The Australian Good Design Award Gold recognition affirms this approach and signals growing recognition that the future of urban infrastructure lies not in engineering excellence alone, but in genuinely integrated design that places human and environmental outcomes at its centre.

Australian Good Design Awards
good-design.org

COX Architecture
coxarchitecture.com.au

CONTEXT
context.net.au

Photography
Simon Wood