Accelerated Infrastructure Fund

The Accelerated Infrastructure Fund (AIF) was launched on 3 April 2020 as part of the Planning System Acceleration Program, to cut red tape and fast-track planning processes to keep people in jobs and the construction industry moving throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

The objectives of the fund are to:

• fund infrastructure that unblocks development approvals and enables development activity, and speeds up the delivery of housing supply
• stimulate construction activity by investing in infrastructure projects that can be brought forward quickly
• encourage developers to enact development approvals and invest in construction
• encourage councils to bring forward expenditure of local developer contributions to accelerate infrastructure delivery.

The AIF sits alongside existing Infrastructure Funding, such as the Housing Acceleration Fund within the department, to support the continued delivery of new homes and jobs throughout NSW.

During the first 2 rounds of AIF, the NSW Government worked in partnership with the Western Sydney councils to allocate $667 million toward infrastructure that is helping to accelerate the delivery of 38 projects, unlocking more than 100,000 homes and 685 ha of employment land to create around 3,220 jobs.

The AIF program secured an additional round, expanding into a third phase with $300 million in funding.

The aim is to build on the success of the first 2 rounds and support the delivery of local infrastructure in high-growth areas of metropolitan NSW and, for the first time, regional areas.

The funding will be split, with up to $180 million allocated to metropolitan projects and up to $120 million for regional projects in high growth areas. The funding will be available for councils, state agencies and utilities to deliver roads, stormwater, electricity infrastructure, sewerage and public open space projects, to enable and support the construction of new homes and development of employment land.

In the initial allocation of AIF Round 3, $254 million is being allocated towards 36 projects in metropolitan and regional NSW, supporting up to 140,000 homes.