Luddenham Residents Feel Overlooked as Western Sydney Airport Opens

Luddenham is a five-minute drive from Western Sydney International Airport (WSI), but some residents say they are missing out on the benefits it should be bringing them.

The New South Wales and federal governments have invested $28 billion to deliver the airport, which will open for freight aircraft on Monday, as well as surrounding infrastructure and the foundation of the city of Bradfield.

The Luddenham Progress Association's Wayne Wilmington says Bradfield has been getting the lion's share of investment and approvals for development while plans for his town have stalled.

He said about 500 homes were removed to make way for the airport and that they should be replaced.

"The community is shrinking," Mr Wilmington said.

Luddenham Public School has 35 students, down from 74 in 2016, although the Catholic primary school has consistently had 250 students for the past 10 years.

Mr Wilmington, whose connection to Luddenham goes back to the 1850s, said the NSW government's plan for more housing in Luddenham had stalled since the 2023 state election.

"Bradfield is where the government owns the land — they're getting everything," he said.

"We don't want high-rise in Luddenham … we want it to remain a viable community. Not a city, but a community."

Luddenham village plans stall

A 2022 state government document outlines a scenario in which 1,200 homes could be added in Luddenham's north, away from expected aircraft noise.

According to the document, consultation with councils, the federal government, state agencies and the community was to start in 2022.

Mr Wilmington said there had not been any movement since then.

A NSW Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure spokesperson said the airport and federal government were involved in a working group to identify and respond to possible noise impacts on the village.

"Targeted consultation with state agencies and local councils is underway to determine next steps for the village," the spokesperson said.

"We look forward to progressing with the most sustainable strategy for the future of Luddenham."

A spokesperson for the planning department said Bradfield City had a housing target of 10,000 homes, 10 per cent of which were to be affordable dwellings.

The price of progress

Road and infrastructure construction has brought business to Luddenham, but residents, having seen the test flights overhead, wonder if that will last.

"When the airport opens, I think they'll [local businesses] struggle some more, because they're getting a lot of business at the moment from the people who are working over at the airport," Luddenham Progress Association member Glen Marsden said.

Road improvements have been welcomed by residents, but the changes have brought an end to John Cilpani's 34 years in Luddenham.

The Northern Road now cuts through his property, which sits at the south-western end of the runway, and he says runoff from the airport has filtered into his dams.

"I bought knowing that I bought on the boundary of Badgerys Creek airport," Mr Cilpani said.

"I didn't think I'd live long enough to see it."

He said he had been offered noise insulation, but the noise of the traffic from the road was bad enough when he was outside.

"When you're in an open green area, you can't expect it to stay like that forever," Mr Cilpani said.

Matt Vella, who has run the Luddenham farmers market in the village for 10 years, says business is still good despite the loss of some customers due to the rerouting of the Northern Road.

He said he would wait and see whether or not the town was missing out on development.

"It's a good country town," he said.

"It's been good to us, so I can't complain there."

Norman Schuk, who made the 20-minute drive from Leppington to watch a freight plane landing, said the airport's opening would be a turning point for Western Sydney.

"You can already see the industry starting to come out here, freight terminals, things like that. This will just boom now," he said.

"It'll be easy for me to get to Bali."