Train chiefs move to avoid repeat of timetable changes that crippled Sydney network

Transport chiefs say Sydney’s passenger rail network will avoid a repeat of timetable changes in 2017 that crippled the system, and that they have enough train drivers for the 800 extra weekly services due to start on October 20.

The first major new rail timetable since 2017 will include a new T6 shuttle service between Lidcombe and Bankstown, and a shift of some T1 western line services from earlier times in the morning peak to between 9am and 10am.

The new rail timetable will be introduced on October 20.Credit: Ben Symons

Following the opening of the city section of the M1 metro line in August, there will be a reduction of four trains an hour to 16 on the T1 north shore line for the busiest hour in both the morning and afternoon.

Transport officials said there would still be a train every three to four minutes on the T1 line, while the frequency of services for smaller stations and those on the upper north shore would remain unchanged.

A planned new timetable for buses in Sydney has been delayed for weeks due to recent industrial action stymying work to roll them out.

Passengers endured widespread cancellations and delays to trains for weeks after a new timetable was introduced in late 2017 under the previous Coalition government. A review last year into the rail system found the 2017 timetable was “far too tight to effectively maintain services, provide resilience following incidents” and conduct maintenance.

The T1 North Shore line will have a reduction of four trains an hour to 16 during peak periods.Credit: Louise Kennerley

Sydney Trains acting chief executive Hayden Donoghue said he was “100 per cent confident” they had the right number of drivers, guards and station staff for the extra services for the new timetable on October 20.

“We did not have the right number of crew [in 2017] to execute that particular timetable. That was the problem,” he said.

A common gripe about the timetable changes is that they may lead to longer wait times for some people at bus stops or railway stations for connecting services.

However, Donoghue said transport authorities were making a concerted effort to ensure bus timetables better matched those for trains. Staff in orange T-shirts will be at stations to help commuters navigate the timetable changes.

Transport Minister Jo Haylen said the work commute had changed since the pandemic, creating greater demand for train services outside traditional peak periods. “That’s why we are making sure there are more trains running at the times when passengers need them most, particularly in the mornings between nine and 10am,” she said.

Transport for NSW planning analysis director Jessica Bennett encouraged commuters to plan their journeys because the timing of their journeys might change on October 20. She said the new rail timetable had been loaded into the trip planner app.

“People might be travelling a little bit earlier; they might be travelling a little bit later; and we just need to encourage people to plan their trip,” she said. “They can get on the trip planner app now and have a look at how they can optimise their connections between modes.”

She urged year 12 students who would be sitting HSC exams to plan their journeys. She said transport officials had been informing schools of the upcoming changes.

The first week of the new timetable also coincides with major events at Sydney Olympic Park such as concerts by The Weeknd, which will increase stress on the rail system because extra trains will need to be put on to ferry concertgoers to and from events.

The extra 800 weekly services by double-deck trains are in addition to the extra services that resulted from the opening of the M1 metro line between Chatswood and Sydenham via the central city in August.

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