It’s hard to believe that after 80 years of “not in my backyard” campaigning, the second airport in Western Sydney is finally functional. (Western Sydney on a whole new plane, ST, 25/10). It’s enlightening that in my own street in North Parramatta, campaigns to block new buildings because of privacy concerns and even child care centres because of “noise and traffic chaos” all ended up being exaggerated. We are an imaginative lot when convincing ourselves of impending disaster from any nearby construction. All the willowing whiners of the West are perhaps about to get a reality check, confirming that their worst nightmares kept them awake more than any night noise under the new flight corridors. Negating past anxieties, the terrific convenience of accessing the world without trudging across city traffic must be worthy recompense. Alan Sexton, Parramatta 1November 2026
