The long-touted interchange is back in focus after Lake Macquarie council endorsed a plan to rezone land in Glendale and adjacent suburbs for 4000 new homes.

That site, combined with a host of other residential subdivisions in the city's north-west and Newcastle's far west, are expected to contribute to a population increase of more than 20,000 people in coming years.

The area's population has already grown significantly over the past decade as Cameron Park and adjacent suburbs have developed.

READ MORE: Unprecedented growth in north-west Lake Macquarie

The interchange, which includes a bridge over the railway line, a train station and supporting infrastructure, has stalled in recent years after the state government rejected a business case for the project. It said the numbers in the study, produced for the council, did not stack up.

The council disputed that summation, but either way momentum to bring the project to reality has dwindled.

It is routinely highlighted by local MPs each year when it goes unfunded.

Labor Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery still wants to see it built, but independent Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper believes given the project has not got off the ground in decades, it is time to take a fresh look at the train station aspect of the proposal.

"Things have probably overtaken it," Mr Piper said.

"It's been on the books for some 30 years, in one form or another.

"Could it have worked and should it have been delivered many years ago, yes.

"However, given that it didn't, if we were starting from scratch - is that where we would be looking now? I think things have moved on."

Asked if it was dead in the water, Mr Piper said: "I think it probably is, in that form."

"We've been flogging a dead horse for a while now and it's probably better to change our view," he said.

Liberal councillor and Cameron Park resident Kevin Baker said a train station at Glendale had "some merits" but the interchange needed "a rethink". He said the project had been put in the "too hard pile" by both the state government and council.

"We need to go back to the drawing board," he said.

One impediment to a Glendale train station is its proximity to existing stations at Cardiff and Cockle Creek.

Cardiff is a primary stop and well used, but is difficult to access and there is no room to expand parking.

"Nobody would think to get rid of Cardiff station, and one of the arguments has been the proximity of Cardiff to Glendale," Mr Piper said.

"But Cockle Creek ... maybe it would sit better with the separation of stations.

"We've got Costco going in, the new residential development, the proximity to the main road. It's without the same complications to the rail network, so I think we should be looking there.

"But that doesn't mean other elements of the Glendale proposal don't stand. The Pennant Street bridge has been accommodated in the road network ... and that element should go ahead."

Boolaroo resident Abi Gooch catches the train from Cockle Creek to university in Newcastle twice a week. She catches the train to save money on parking and because the drive takes too long in peak hours. She believes the station goes largely unused because of its isolation and lack of facilities, but also because it is not a main stop.

"There's only a rough car park and with the walk you have to go around on the bridge, compared to other stations which have elevators," the 18-year-old said before boarding on Friday.

"I've got to wait half an hour on the way home from uni because it doesn't stop at Cockle Creek. Upgrading it would be a good idea with Costco coming in and the main road becoming busier, and for it to become more recognised and so people with disabilities can use it."

Geoff Rock, head of the Urban Development Institute of Australia's Hunter chapter, said Cockle Creek could be improved but it was "in the wrong place" to capture the growing population north-west of Glendale.

He said the interchange study's rejection had "tarnished" the project and the region needed to work out how to convince Macquarie Street it was worth funding.

"It needs to be reimagined," he said. "The potential for the Glendale area there if that transport interchange gets done right, it's the Parramatta to Newcastle. People from the north could be shooting down and catching a train into town and there's potential for businesses to relocate there."

One option to reimagine the project would be to link it with a broader redevelopment of the adjacent Stockland shopping centre. It is a large site with business zoning and a 13-metre building height limit, but with the addition of a train station there would be merits for an increase. Stockland chose not to comment on Friday but has previously expressed a desire to redevelop at least part of the ageing retail site.

Mr Rock said a partnership project with the retail owner would achieve far greater outcomes and potentially open up residential development opportunities.

He said mine workings in that area could possibly hinder such a proposal, but they could be overcome with the extension of a state government mine-grouting fund that exists in Newcastle.

Lake Macquarie council did not say whether Cockle Creek had firmed in its thinking as a favoured station for improved passenger rail facilities, but a spokeswoman said the Pennant Street Bridge remained "one of several enabling pieces of infrastructure needed to address public transport access and traffic flow challenges".

"Council views the Glendale/Cardiff area as a future economic powerhouse for the Hunter - a catalyst area for jobs, housing and population growth, with modern infrastructure to match," she said. "We are open to new projects, private and public investment and partnerships to support this growth."

A Transport for NSW spokesman said government agencies were working to identify the "transport services and infrastructure required to accommodate the anticipated growth".

"This planning work includes considering the public transport network including buses and trains, the road network and active transport needs in the area," he said.

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