State Environmental Planning Policy (Transport and Infrastructure) 2021

This Policy is State Environmental Planning Policy (Transport and Infrastructure) 2021.

This Policy commences on 1 March 2022 and is required to be published on the NSW legislation website.

In this Policy—

Division 5.1 assessment guidelines means the Guidelines for Division 5.1 assessments published by the Department in May 2026.

residential zone means the following zones—

Zone R1 General Residential,

Zone R2 Low Density Residential,

Zone R3 Medium Density Residential,

Zone R4 High Density Residential,

Zone R5 Large Lot Residential.

SCPP—new health services facilities and schools means the Stakeholder and Community Participation Plan for New Health Services Facilities and Schools published by the Department in October 2024.

temporary housing has the same meaning as in State Environmental Planning Policy (Housing) 2021, Chapter 3, Part 14.

the Act means the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Note—

The Act and the Interpretation Act 1987 contain definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Policy.

The Interpretation Act 1987, section 30A is taken to apply to the provisions transferred to this Policy on the commencement of this Policy in the same way as it applies to provisions transferred from a statutory rule to another statutory rule.

Note—

The Interpretation Act 1987, section 30A provides—

the transfer of a provision does not affect the operation or meaning of the provision, and

a transferred provision is to be construed as if it had not been transferred.

The aim of this Chapter is to facilitate the effective delivery of infrastructure across the State by—

improving regulatory certainty and efficiency through a consistent planning regime for infrastructure and the provision of services, and

providing greater flexibility in the location of infrastructure and service facilities, and

allowing for the efficient development, redevelopment or disposal of surplus government owned land, and

identifying the environmental assessment category into which different types of infrastructure and services development fall (including identifying certain development of minimal environmental impact as exempt development), and

identifying matters to be considered in the assessment of development adjacent to particular types of infrastructure development, and

providing for consultation with relevant public authorities about certain development during the assessment process or prior to development commencing, and

providing opportunities for infrastructure to demonstrate good design outcomes.

Except as otherwise provided by this Chapter, this Chapter applies to the State.

A word or expression used in this Chapter has the same meaning as it has in the Standard Instrument unless it is otherwise defined in this Chapter.

In this Chapter—

associated public transport facilities for a railway station, public ferry wharf or road means such of the following as are integrated or associated with the station, wharf or road—

car parks intended for use by commuters,

public transport interchanges (being locations intended for use by commuters to transfer between and to different kinds of public transport such as buses, trains and ferries),

bus bays (being locations that are set aside for buses to stop or park for the purpose of picking up and setting down passengers),

bus layovers.

Blue Book means Managing Urban Stormwater: Soils & Construction (4th edition, Landcom, 2004), commonly referred to as the “Blue Book” and as in force at the commencement of State Environmental Planning Policy (Infrastructure) Amendment 2018.

bus layover means a location set aside for buses to park during periods between bus journeys.

Note.

Bus layovers may (but need not) have amenities for bus drivers to use during periods between bus journeys.

Coastal Wetlands and Littoral Rainforests Area Map has the same meaning as in State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021, Chapter 2.

consent—

when used in relation to the carrying out of development without consent, means development consent and any other type of consent, licence, permission, approval or authorisation that is required by or under an environmental planning instrument, and

when used in any other context, means development consent.

Note.

As a result of paragraph (a) of the definition of consent, development that this Chapter provides may be carried out without development consent may also be carried out without any other consent, licence, permission, approval or authorisation that would otherwise be required by another environmental planning instrument (such as an approval to remove a tree that is subject to a tree preservation order).

Development that does not require consent under Part 4 of the Act and is not a project to which Part 3A of the Act applies or exempt development will be subject to the environmental assessment and approval requirements of Part 5 of the Act.

consent authority has the same meaning as it has in the Act.

emergency works means works carried out in response to—

a sudden natural event, including a storm, flood, tree fall, bush fire, land slip or coastal inundation, or

accident, equipment failure or structural collapse, or

damage caused by vandalism, arson or a pollution incident,

provided the works involve no greater disturbance to soil or vegetation than necessary and are carried out in accordance with all applicable requirements of the Blue Book.

environmental management works means—

works for the purpose of avoiding, reducing, minimising or managing the environmental effects of development (including effects on water, soil, air, biodiversity, traffic or amenity), and

environmental protection works.

estimated development cost has the same meaning as in the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021.

flood liable land has the same meaning as in the Flood Risk Management Manual.

Flood Risk Management Manual means the Flood Risk Management Manual, ISBN 978-1-923076-17-4, published by the NSW Government in June 2023.

heritage conservation area means land identified as a heritage conservation area or place of Aboriginal significance (or by a similar description) in an environmental planning instrument.

heritage significance means historic, scientific, cultural, social, archaeological, architectural, natural or aesthetic significance.

infrastructure facility means development that is the subject of development controls under Part 2.3.

Lighting for Roads and Public Spaces Standard means the following Australian and New Zealand Standards—

AS/NZS 1158.0:2005, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 0: Introduction,

AS/NZS 1158.1.1:2005, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 1.1: Vehicular traffic (Category V) lighting—Performance and design requirements,

AS/NZS 1158.1.2:2010, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 1.2: Vehicular traffic (Category V) lighting—Guide to design, installation, operation and maintenance,

AS/NZS 1158.2:2005, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 2: Computer procedures for the calculation of light technical parameters for Category V and Category P lighting,

AS/NZS 1158.3.1:2005, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 3.1: Pedestrian area (Category P) lighting—Performance and design requirements,

AS/NZS 1158.4:2009, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 4: Lighting of pedestrian crossings,

AS/NZS 1158.5:2007, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 5: Tunnels and underpasses,

AS/NZS 1158.6:2010, Lighting for roads and public spaces, Part 6: Luminaires.

local heritage item means—

a place, building, work, relic, tree, archaeological site or Aboriginal object that is identified as a heritage item (or by a similar description) in a local or regional environmental plan, or

an item of local heritage significance, as defined by the Heritage Act 1977, that is the subject of an interim heritage order in force under that Act or is listed as an item of local heritage significance on the State Heritage Inventory under that Act.

maintenance includes repair.

primary road means the road to which the front of a dwelling house, or a main building, on a lot faces or is proposed to face.

public authority—

has the same meaning as it has in the Act, and

in respect of development connected with rail corridors or railway infrastructure facilities, includes the Australian Rail Track Corporation Limited (ACN 081 455 754).

railway station includes any station for a metro (within the meaning of the Transport Administration Act 1988).

site compatibility certificate means a certificate issued under section 2.19(5).

Standard Instrument means the standard local environmental planning instrument prescribed by the Standard Instrument (Local Environmental Plans) Order 2006 made under the Act.

State heritage item means an item of State heritage significance, as defined by the Heritage Act 1977, that is the subject of an interim heritage order in force under that Act or listed on the State Heritage Register under that Act.

State land means—

Crown land within the meaning of the Crown Land Management Act 2016, or

any other land of the Crown or vested in a Minister on behalf of the Crown, or

land owned by a public authority other than a council.

telecommunications facility—see section 2.140.

the Act means the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979.

Transport for NSW or TfNSW means Transport for NSW constituted under the Transport Administration Act 1988.

waste has the same meaning as in Schedule 3 to the Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2000.

written notice includes notice by electronic mail or facsimile.

Note.

The Act and the Interpretation Act 1987 contain definitions and other provisions that affect the interpretation and application of this Chapter.

If this Chapter provides that development for a particular purpose that may be carried out without consent includes construction works, the following works or activities are (subject to and without limiting that provision) taken to be construction works if they are carried out for that purpose—

accessways,

temporary construction yards,

temporary lay-down areas for materials or equipment,

temporary structures,

investigations (including geotechnical and other testing, surveying and the placement of survey marks, and sampling),

clearing of vegetation (including any necessary cutting, pruning, ringbarking or removal of trees) and associated rectification and landscaping,

demolition,

relocation or removal of infrastructure,

extraction of extractive materials at the construction site solely for the purpose of the construction.

If this Chapter provides that development for a particular purpose that may be carried out without consent includes routine maintenance works, the following works or activities are (subject to and without limiting that provision) taken to be routine maintenance works if they are carried out for that purpose—

routine repairs to or replacement of equipment or assets,

temporary construction yards,

clearing of vegetation (including any necessary cutting, pruning, ringbarking or removal of trees) and associated rectification and landscaping.

Notes included in this Chapter are provided for guidance and do not form part of this Chapter.

A reference in this chapter to a lot or to land in a named land use zone is a reference—

to land that, under an environmental planning instrument made as provided by the Act, section 3.20(2), is in a land use zone specified in the Standard Instrument, and

to land that, under an environmental planning instrument that is not made as provided by the Act, section 3.20(2), is in a land use zone in which equivalent land uses are permitted to those permitted in the named land use zone.

A reference in this Chapter to a named map adopted by this Chapter is a reference to a map by that name—

approved by the Minister when the map is adopted, and

as amended or replaced from time to time by maps declared by environmental planning instruments to amend or replace that map, and approved by the Minister when the instruments are made.

Any 2 or more named maps may be combined into a single map. In that case, a reference in this Chapter to any such named map is a reference to the relevant part or aspect of the single map.

Any such maps are to be kept and made available for public access in accordance with arrangements approved by the Minister.

For the purposes of this Chapter, and despite any other provision of this Chapter, development that is subject to a precondition that must be satisfied before it may be carried out without development consent is not development that may be carried out without development consent under this Chapter until the precondition is satisfied.

Note.

This section is subject to section 3.28(4) of the Act.

Except as provided by subsection (2), if there is an inconsistency between this Chapter and any other environmental planning instrument, whether made before or after the commencement of this Chapter, this Chapter prevails to the extent of the inconsistency.

Note.

Subsection (1) does not prevent a local environmental plan from making provision about development of a kind specified in Part 2.3 in a particular zone if the provisions of this Chapter dealing with development of that kind do not apply in that zone.

Except as provided by subsections (2A), (3) and (4), if there is an inconsistency between a provision of this Chapter and any of the following provisions of another environmental planning instrument, the provision of the other instrument prevails to the extent of the inconsistency—

State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021, sections 2.7, 2.8 and 2.16,

State Environmental Planning Policy (Precincts—Central River City) 2021, Chapter 2,

State Environmental Planning Policy (Precincts—Eastern Harbour City) 2021, Chapter 2,

State Environmental Planning Policy (Precincts—Regional) 2021, Chapter 2,

State Environmental Planning Policy (Precincts—Regional) 2021, Chapter 4, except in relation to development carried out by or on behalf of an electricity supply authority, public authority or carrier,

State Environmental Planning Policy (Precincts—Western Parkland City) 2021, Chapter 2.

Sections 2.44A, 2.80A, 2.93A, 2.110A, 2.126A, 2.137A and 2.159A prevail over State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021, section 2.7 to the extent of an inconsistency.

Section 2.54 prevails over State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021, sections 2.7 and 2.8 to the extent of an inconsistency.

A provision of this Chapter that permits development for the purpose of emergency works or routine maintenance works to be carried out without consent, or that provides that development for that purpose is exempt development, prevails over State Environmental Planning Policy (Resilience and Hazards) 2021, sections 2.7 and 2.8 to the extent of any inconsistency, but only if any adverse effect on the land concerned is restricted to the minimum possible to allow the works to be carried out.

For the avoidance of doubt, development to which subsection (2A), (3) or (4) applies is not declared designated development for the purposes of the Act.

In this section—

carrier has the same meaning as in the Telecommunications Act 1997 of the Commonwealth.

The Acts, regulations and provisions of Acts specified below in relation to particular development to which this Chapter applies do not apply to that development to the extent necessary to enable the development to be carried out in accordance with this Chapter or with a consent granted under the Act—

development to which clause 7(2) of State Environmental Planning Policy No 54—Northside Storage Tunnel applied immediately before its repeal—so much of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 and the regulations made under that Act as would prevent or restrict the continued operation of the Northside Storage Tunnel (as defined by section 2.125),

development to which clause 9(1) of State Environmental Planning Policy No 63—Major Transport Projects applied immediately before its repeal—section 68 of the Local Government Act 1993 and sections 86, 87 and 91(b) of the Public Works Act 1912,

development to which clause 8(1) of State Environmental Planning Policy (Sydney Metropolitan Water Supply) 2004 applied immediately before its repeal—Part 4 and Divisions 8 and 9 of Part 6 of the Heritage Act 1977,

development to which clause 9(1) of State Environmental Planning Policy (Sydney Metropolitan Water Supply) 2004 applied immediately before its repeal—

the Fisheries Management Act 1994 and the regulations made under that Act, and

section 68 of the Local Government Act 1993, and

so much of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 and the regulations made under that Act as would prevent or restrict the laying, maintenance or use of seawater inlet and outlet pipelines and tunnelling under Botany Bay National Park, or to a sewer line, for a desalination plant (including a pilot plant) on the Kurnell Peninsula.

This section does not affect the rights or interests of any public authority under any registered instrument.

In accordance with clause 28 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, before the making of this Chapter, the Governor approved the making of this section with the concurrence in writing of the Ministers administering the Acts referred to in subsection (1).