A new road between MacDonald St and Mitchell Rd would funnel through traffic into Erskineville and Newtown’s quiet residential streets. Please support our campaign for a public square instead.

Coronation Property and the City of Sydney are planning to turn MacDonald St into a major through road.

This new road is NOT needed for property access. There will be car access to all existing and planned buildings in the Ashmore precinct without it. The road’s main effect would be to open up local streets to through traffic from WestConnex, Euston Rd, King St and other major roads.

That would mean more traffic on residential streets including Eve St, Fox Ave, Foundry Ln, George St, Hadfields St, Knight St, MacDonald St, Munni St, Prospect St, Rochford St, St John St, Union St, and Victoria St. The road would also attract more traffic onto existing rat runs, including Maddox St, Mitchell Rd and Coulson St.

Traffic calming won’t stop the through traffic. Navigation apps will send traffic along these streets day and night to avoid traffic lights and congestion on the main roads. Our streets will be inundated with noisy trucks, motorcycles and cars, bringing more air pollution, traffic danger and damage to parked vehicles. It will be less safe for children to walk to school, leading to more school traffic.

The new road would sever the Park Sydney Village shopping centre from the future Ashmore South shops. It would impact business footfall and limit outdoor dining.

Neither Coronation Property nor the City has assessed or modelled the impacts of this road on residential streets, safety and amenity. Community consultation has been minimal.

We’re calling for this public space to become a people‑friendly plaza – the Ashmore Village Square. A safe place to walk, shop, dine, meet and play – not a conduit for through traffic.

Please sign our letter to Lord Mayor Clover Moore asking her to pause and consult the community on the future of this public space.

January 2026 update

In December 2025, we received a response from Lord Mayor Clover Moore: click here. It contains several arguments that are not supported by evidence and are misaligned with her and the City's policies and objectives. Dr Chris Standen, a transport planning and travel behaviour expert at UNSW, and a local parent, has fact-checked these and some other misconceptions in this document: click here.