After years of uncertainty, residents of Sydney's inner west will be able to travel the length of the completed greenway bike and walking track between Cooks River and Iron Cove by the end of 2021.
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But the leafy corridor connecting Earlwood to the Parramatta River for walkers and cyclists isn't expected to fully flourish as a major cultural and community destination for at least a decade.
The greenway, coveted for years by inner west councils and locals, will provide a continuous link from the Cooks River cycle path to the Bay Run at Iron Cove, which is close to city bike corridors.
It follows the route of the Inner West Light Rail Line, which opened in 2014.
The Inner West Council last week adopted a final masterplan for the project, outlining its ambition to start building bridges and tunnels to connect "missing links" along the track this time next year.
Early works on the 5.8-kilometre path will focus on “central links” between Parramatta Road and Old Canterbury Road, and “southern links” between Old Canterbury Road and the Cooks River.
There will also be public spaces created along parts of the light rail corridor, including at Lewisham West and Dulwich Hill, and work to integrate public artworks and other community infrastructure.
Inner West councillor Anna York said residents wanted the active transport corridor to walk and ride bikes safely with their families, while also enjoying green space and wildlife.
"For those of us who are living in the inner city having a greenway is a really rare opportunity and that will be central to the vision that we realise."
The council will soon lodge a development application for the first stage of the project, with construction expected to start on bridges and tunnels in about 12 months.
Links in both stages will be built by the end of 2021.
Other works planned for the next 10 to 15 years include improved path connections across roads, upgrades to Hawthorne Canal parks and a precinct revamp where the track meets the Cooks River.
The long-term plan for the space also includes provision for recreational and cultural activities, from dog parks and sports facilities to an amphitheatre and community gardens.
"There's a beautiful vision for a lot more added infrastructure and community activation, like more public artworks, a creative play space and a cafe," Cr York said.
Plans for the project said an estimated 300 to 450 bike riders, and similar amounts of pedestrians, would use the path each day in 2021, with a four-fold increase in users expected by 2041.
Cr York said the masterplan was "a very important milestone" for the community after more than a decade of planning and years of uncertainty.
In 2011, then transport minister Gladys Berejiklian shelved plans for the greenway because she regarded the estimated cost of $37 million at the time as too expensive.
But the project was revived when the Baird government and Inner West Council committed $7 million each to start work on missing gaps in the path in 2016.
Funds were boosted by $8.8 million this year from the Greater Sydney Commission, which identified the project as a priority of its city-wide green grid scheme to link open space and cycle paths.
The council said $27.8 million for the early upgrades would be drawn from the existing funding.
It will continue to lobby state and federal governments for the rest of the $57 million proposed for works during the next 10 to 15 years.
