Sustainable Infrastructure Program
The Sustainable Infrastructure Program (SIP) is streamlining and driving decarbonisation and circularity on our projects. It has a strong focus on digital solutions and driving change at the earliest stages of a project’s lifecycle.
It is also built upon industry co-creation and passion. We began by workshopping and unpacking barriers to decarbonisation with over 370 industry specialists representing 135 organisations.
We have now developed a suite of various practical tools, standards and digital solutions to help Transport for NSW and our industry partners reach our decarbonisation and net zero goals with more to come in the years ahead. We are now ready to share this work with the broader infrastructure community.
What is SIP?
SIP is a pathway for Transport and industry to collectively deliver on infrastructure-related net zero targets and transition to a circular asset model. It is aligned to Transport’s Net Zero and Climate Change Policy and is integrated with the broader 2026 Decarbonising Infrastructure Delivery Roadmap.
It focuses on creating practical change to help both Transport and industry meet our decarbonisation targets, through the infrastructure capital program, all the way to operations, maintenance and end of life.
SIP is built upon the below five workstreams.
Net Zero Procurement
Place carbon alongside of cost, schedule and other functions through procurement
Net Zero Engineering & Innovation
Reform the way we design infrastructure to drive cost and carbon reductions
Decarbonising Development phase
Set carbon values in business cases that drive rapid decarbonisation, and tackle carbon early in the lifecycle
Decarbonising Construction phase
Accelerate uptake of zero emission plant & equipment and embrace the Modern Methods of Construction
Cross Cluster Systems Processes and Alignment
Alignment across Transport
What are our immediate deliverables?
Common data model for infrastructure
The world’s first Common Data Model for Infrastructure will establish a groundbreaking shared digital language across the built environment that considers Environmental, Social & Governance dimensions. It will enable consistent automation of workflows and processes - everything from cost, schedule, risk, to whole-life carbon.
Engineering Cost and Carbon Library
A library of over 4,000 construction resources that defines baseline carbon. It will support industry to have a clear, consistent and easily-understandable register of the carbon impact of their projects aligned to cost management and engineering design. It sets out a consistent classification system for whole-life cost and carbon, leveraging international standards.
Global Warming Potential in the Concrete Mix Register
We have updated the Concrete Mix Register to include A1-A3 Global Warming Potential. This will streamline the approval of concrete mixes while also making it easier for our delivery partners to make more transparent procurement decisions to reduce emissions. This is part of a two-phase approach with industry outlined in the consultation report.
Cost & Carbon Management in Infrastructure Guideline
This guideline details how to leverage existing cost management processes to manage carbon across the infrastructure lifecycle by using the Engineering Cost and Carbon Library. This guideline provides an introduction to the cost and carbon management process and is a platform to update Transport standards, specifications and frameworks.
What does this look like on projects?
The Engineering Carbon and Cost Library (ECCL) was used during the strategic stage for the one of Australia’s largest infrastructure and city-shaping programs, the 11,200ha Western Sydney International Airport Precinct.
Transport has identified seven road corridors that could constitute the Western Sydney International Airport Precinct Road Network. There is a proposed multi-billion dollar program of works currently at the strategic business case stage, with delivery dates proposed for 2030/2040.
Integrated carbon & cost management was executed on the project at the strategic stage. Cost was ‘mirrored’ by baseline carbon through applying the ECCL, which enables automation of baseline carbon estimates as part of the existing cost estimation process. The ECCL is configured to the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Whole Life Carbon Assessment (WLCA) 2nd Edition and the National Embodied Carbon Measurement Guidance.
Several decarbonised options were derived from key carbon hotspots across roads and bridges, with the marginal cost of abatement established. The seven corridors were analysed and compared for cost and carbon using the International Cost Management Standard 3 (ICMS3) and benchmarks Transport has developed as part of the ‘Global Estimating’ approach. The project has helped to inform the development of Transport Carbon & Cost Management Technical Guidance.
A back analysis of the Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) was completed to account for embodied emissions. Including embodied emissions and marginal abatement costs did not materially affect the CBA results. Embodied emissions accounted for less than 1% of total benefits (in absolute value terms) while marginal costs represent less than 1% of total costs.
The Blacktown Bus Layover was a successful pilot for developing and informing Transport's sustainable procurement approach for projects with minor capital delivery costs.
It was upgraded as part of the NSW Government’s Easing Sydney Congestion (ESC) program, which aims to enhance operational efficiency across Sydney’s road network through targeted infrastructure developments.
By embedding civil standards and specifications within sustainable procurement requirements, the project achieved significant circular economy outcomes. The project used the maximum amount of recycled crushed concrete in the select material zone and dense graded base. It also optimised the use of recycled crushed glass, ground granulated blast furnace slag, and fly ash for lean mix concrete subbase and base.
The project incorporated the maximum level of recycled crushed glass in asphalt, and 80% of the energy used during construction was sourced from renewable energy.
The Albion Park Rail Bypass is an example of the circular economy in action, utilising over 1 million tonnes of recycled material. This project was designed to complete the missing link for a high-standard road between Sydney and Bomaderry, improving connectivity for freight, buses, and tourists. It extends the M1 Princes Motorway by 9.8 kilometres, bypassing the town of Albion Park Rail between Yallah and Oak Flats. The project includes 13 bridges and various local road upgrades, as well as pedestrian and cyclist facilities to enhance connectivity.
Through the procurement, tender documentation, and contract management processes, Transport was able to influence material and process selection, encouraging innovation. Many of the initiatives on Albion Park Rail Bypass were contractor led throughout delivery, and supported by Transport in a fully collaborative approach to achieve outcomes.
Albion Park Rail Bypass adopted a circular economy approach to keep materials in use for longer. The project represents best practice in circular infrastructure, successfully reusing approximately:
500,000 tonnes of coal wash, a low-grade mining waste
300,000 tonnes of tunnel spoil
130,000 tonnes of recycled Select Material Zone (SMZ) material
180,000 tonnes of Heavily Bound Base (HBB)
6,000 tonnes of Recycled Crushed Glass (RCG) used in asphalt
To replace sand used in asphalt, the Albion Park Rail Bypass used recycled crushed glass equivalent to 30 million glass bottles. The base asphalt layer used on the bypass is made up of 25% recycled material, including 10% recycled crushed glass and 15% reclaimed asphalt pavement. 15% reclaimed asphalt pavement. The project received grant funding from the NSW EPA through the Civil Construction Market Program to promote RCG uptake, demonstrating collaboration between NSW Government agencies.
The M12RT project integrated Sustainable Procurement in Infrastructure with an updated project deed exhibiting the Scope of Works and Technical Criteria (SWTC), also updated design and construct request for tender.
A series of pilot baseline sustainability requirements were developed as well as a review of contractual requirements from road, rail, and motorways projects which included emission reduction targets. Requirements included a Sustainability Management Plan and Carbon Management Plan, as well as centralised and consistent monthly reporting.
Bidders were requested to nominate targets higher than the baseline, which was assessed as part of tender evaluation. These commitments subsequently formed part of the project deed on M12RT which is currently in design. Outcomes included:
The Black Hill to Tomago package included a 25% construction emission reduction target in the contract, with optimised use of crushed glass, crushed concrete, reclaimed asphalt pavement and 100% GreenPower for electricity consumption during project delivery.
The ‘Heatherbrae Bypass’ package exceeded some baseline targets, though only the minimum 5% construction emission reduction target formed part of the contract.
Related polices and plans
Transport is committed to transformative action on climate change to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions consistent with the 2016 Paris Agreement and the NSW Climate Change Policy Framework.
The Net-Zero and Climate Change Policy clearly sets out the principles and requirements to support the sector’s transition to net-zero while continuing to create a transport network that is resilient, responsible and optimally adapted to a changing climate.
Infrastructure NSW (INSW) and Transport co-developed the Decarbonising Infrastructure Delivery Roadmap to provide greater policy clarity to industry and communicate the coordinated work of NSW Government. It covers our key activities and milestones relating to embodied emissions.
The Roadmap sets out key initiatives for 2024-2026 towards decarbonising infrastructure delivery and reflects the collaborative relationship between INSW and Transport as a NSW Government leader in this space.
To achieve our sustainability vision of a NSW where every journey is people and planet positive, we needed to create a uniform approach to sustainability across all our modes of transport.
At Transport, our eight focus areas address the most important sustainability aspects associated with our activities, each supported by sustainability goals, where we will concentrate our attention and resources.
Our Sustainability Plan will ensure we are:
being environmentally and socially responsible in the way we work
embedding economic sustainability in decision making
building a transport system that is resilient to future shocks and stresses
Resources
A key deliverable of the SIP was the Sustainable Procurement in Infrastructure Standard, which was co-created with industry. Following this industry co-creation, Pamela Henderson, Head of Technical Services, sat down with the four co-facilitators of our SPII workshops to talk about what Transport and industry need to do to reach our sustainability and decarbonisation goals.
Hudson Worsley, Chair, Materials and Embodied Carbon Leaders Alliance
Jonathan Cartledge, CEO, Consult Australia
Ainsley Simpson, CEO, Infrastructure Sustainability Council
Dr Dak Baweja, Industry Fellow, School of Civil & Environmental Engineering, UTS, and Director – Specialist Businesses, BG&E
