The Cooks to Cove GreenWay project enhances Sydney’s Inner West by creating a vibrant green corridor linking the Cooks River with Iron Cove.
The GreenWay invites people to walk, cycle, relax while exploring art and nature — all within one scenic route. Although the corridor largely follows the Dulwich Hill light rail, project teams rerouted some sections through local streets to work around space constraints. The project aims to transform GreenWay streets into green, low-speed zones that welcome all users.
Creating a connected green corridor
Project teams planted trees and understorey vegetation in landscaped central medians across five streets. The medians meant large trees could be positioned away from overhead powerlines, turning plain asphalt into green, shaded spaces. This created a cooler, more enjoyable environment for residents and visitors, while strengthening ecological connections along the GreenWay. Planners treated streets holistically and redesigned them as low-speed, shared zones popularly known as ‘bike boulevards.’
To build a continuous habitat corridor, the teams planted connected canopy and understorey vegetation. This approach promoted local biodiversity and enhanced the GreenWay experience for everyone using the space. Local native species were chosen from the GreenWay Masterplan planning palette and, where space allowed, tall trees like Sydney Red Gums and Grey Gums were planted.
Lessons and collaboration
The project showed how transport corridors can be transformed into shady, green spaces. Inner West Council carefully evaluated how to achieve a connected green corridor within the narrow strip of land running alongside the light rail.
During construction, the decision to let a civil contractor subcontract arborist work led to issues with accountability. Council recommends in future appointing an independent project arborist for better outcomes.