Ping-pong tables and free transit: plan to bring Sydney’s CBD back from the dead

Free public transit within Sydney's central business district to encourage commuters to explore the city is part of an ambitious CBD revitalisation plan the New South Wales government will consider.

Under the plan, Indigenous culture and history would be better integrated into the cityscape for both locals and tourists, with Aboriginal languages and stories embedded into street signs, and Indigenous art in public spaces.

The ideas are key recommendations that will be delivered to the NSW government on Tuesday as part of the Future of the Sydney CBD report, a study conducted by global design and planning firm Arup with the Committee for Sydney and led by industry leaders across the business, academia, art and Indigenous communities.

The Commission into the Future of the Sydney CBD was formed in late 2020, with the goal of improving Sydney's liveability, creativity and investment issues that have existed both before and after the Covid pandemic.

Of the 47 recommendations the NSW government will consider, key areas of focus include making the CBD an easier and more appealing destination to travel around and spend time in, embedding an Indigenous identity to the landscape, encouraging greater investment and reducing pollution.

Light-centric art installations should also become a permanent CBD fixture, the commission believes, arguing it would harness the popularity of Sydney's Vivid light festival and become a year-round attraction, and make the city safer.

Popular pedestrian routes and crime data would be analysed to determine areas that would most benefit from permanent lighting installations.