The debate was organised by the University of Western Sydney's Urban Research Centre and the Whitlam Institute after the Federal Government's $20billion infrastructure fund was announced in the May 13 budget.

The director of the centre, Professor Philip O'Neill, said Parramatta faced particular challenges.

``Parramatta was identified as having an aggregate of more professional and highly skilled workers than the combined workforces of Macquarie Park and Norwest,'' he said.

``This has been a major transformation over the last couple of decades.

``The issue is now how to reduce the commuting distance from western Sydney with a shift from using motor cars to public transport.

``Western Sydney is arguably Australia's most disadvantaged public transport region.

``We need to expand options for the private sector and government departments to take up opportunities to operate businesses.

We also need to equip new commercial centres and industrial lands with state-of-the-art infrastructure.

``This includes high-speed broadband connections and state-of-the-art high-speed logistics and freight handling systems.''

Professor O'Neill said it would take between five and 10 years to plan and construct major infrastructure.

We can see from the M7 [motorway] the impact a major piece of infrastructure has on the operation of western Sydney,'' he said.

``The lesson from the M7 is that by investing in clever infrastructure projects we can re-engineer western Sydney to produce a sustainable and enriching economy and place to live.

``In the absence of such investment the tendency will be for western Sydney to continue to develop as a place for a commuting workforce, and this is unsustainable. In its present configuration, western Sydney has pretty much reached its territorial limit as far as sustainability and quality of life are concerned.''