Trains to run on schedule for Saturday after ‘indefinite’ delays for Friday rush hour

Sydney trains are to return to normal on Saturday after a glitch caused a network meltdown on Friday evening.

Sydney trains are to return to normal on Saturday morning after a network problem sparked widespread chaos on Friday, with commuters advised to delay travel home.

Trains Info said services will run as scheduled over the weekend, although those heading to the aiport should check for planned track work.

On Friday evening, trains finished their runs earlier and people were told to use nightbusses or avoid non-essential travel after an incident at 5:20am sparked chaos.

A broken down train at Town Hall halted all trains travelling on the T1 North Shore line and also disrupted the T9 Northern line, causing massive delays during the peak hour rush which continued for much of the day.

Sydney Trains warned passengers of the situation on Twitter early Friday morning, advising commuters to catch buses from Town Hall to North Sydney instead.

Commuters are desperately trying to get home. Picture: Twitter @rx4kid

This morning’s incident continues to delay our services into this afternoon's peak. The Rail Operations Centre is working on a plan to run a frequent service on all lines.

Please consider travelling home earlier/later or delay any non-essential travel. Updates to follow. pic.twitter.com/2bBI6EmXdI

— T9 Sydney Trains (@T9SydneyTrains) August 23, 2019

Sydney Trains Chief Executive Howard Collins told Sydneysiders to leave work early due to delays caused by the backlog.

“Just bear with us, but if you need to travel home tonight — if you’ve got an urgent appointment or you need to see your kids, look at some of the alternatives,” he told the ABC.

“We’re doing our best, but a big railway like this, with all the interconnections, may take some time.”

But even those who heeded the warning to leave work early found themselves caught up in the chaos, with some unable to even enter the station.

People trying to avoid the delays by ordering an Uber are facing major pricing surges.

One commuter told the ABC it cost them $66 for a 2.6km journey.

Meanwhile, a separate incident at Central has added to the nightmare, hampering efforts to recover from the morning chaos which affected up to a quarter of a million train users.

According to Sydney Trains, a “track circuit failure” earlier this morning — which has since been fixed — further affected the strained network.

It meant a signal system used to detect where trains are located on a track failed, with the outage lasting for more than an hour.

On Friday, a Transport for NSW spokeswoman told news.com.au there were still “major delays” on much of the city’s rail network, including the T1 North Shore and Western line, the T2 Inner-west and Leppington, T3 Bankstown, T8 Airport and south line and the T9 Northern lines, while the Central Coast and Newcastle lines were also experiencing some delays.

Major delays are continuing. Peter Rae/AAP Image

“We’re advising people who can delay their travel to make alternative arrangements at this stage,” the spokeswoman said.

“For this afternoon for the trip home it’s best to contact Sydney Trains.”

Earlier today, passengers took to social media to complain of “bloody ridiculous” delays and carriages “packed like sardines”.

oh dear.... #sydneytrains #shittytrains #nswpol pic.twitter.com/JCsaeWlbkk

— 🚀 hayley the lil nas x stan 🤪🤙 (@hayyy_png) August 23, 2019

⚠️ Partial closure on the #Northshoreline from Wynyard to North Sydney. Catch local bus routes 290, M20, 343 or 263 from Town Hall to North Sydney or travel via the #Northernline to complete your journey. Get in touch if you require further travel assistance. pic.twitter.com/g9tGgcoFlr

— T1 Sydney Trains (@T1SydneyTrains) August 22, 2019

An explanation from Sydney Trains did little to quell the rising anger.

“A loose hatch on top of a train is close to overhead wiring at Town Hall. To secure safely, the power from this section of track must be isolated. Our electrical crews are working to do this ASAP, and repair crews will then secure the hatch safely. Your patience is appreciated,” Sydney Trains tweeted.

A broken down train in Town Hall sparked chaos. Picture: Twitter/@T1SydneyTrains

A woman falls out of a train during peak hour mayhem. Picture: Twitter/EMI

While the initial situation was resolved, train services faced serious disruption as the backlog has not yet been cleared.

“Services will continue to operate, however they will not run to timetable,” Sydney Trains said in a statement Friday afternoon.

“The incident follows the discovery of a damaged roof hatch on a Tangara train that was found to be off its hinges and close to touching the 1500 volt overhead wiring.

“To safely isolate the power and remove the hatch, a section of the T1 North Shore Line had to be closed for three hours, causing significant delays across the network.”

Sydney Trains sincerely apologised to all impacted commuters.

Furious commuters have demanded refunds from NSW Transport as delays continue to drag on.

Sydney Trains isn’t offering any refunds or compensation to commuters from this morning’s train debacle. Love paying to be trapped in a stationary train for over half an hour! @abcnews @smh @dailytelegraph https://t.co/jkvvSkOn6z

— Alyssa - Amazon FC Ambassador (@thatsironical) August 23, 2019

NSW Transport said “compensation will be assessed on a case-by-case basis”. Commuters need to make an official request for a fare refund online.

Here are some pictures of just how close this hatch was to 1500 volts of overhead wiring today.

It appears that something has struck this hatch prior to arriving at Town Hall. We're investigating.

As you can understand, we needed to isolate the power before starting repairs. pic.twitter.com/Px3YkkPDck

— Trains Info (@TrainsInfo) August 23, 2019

There have been reports of passengers being warned of “indefinite delays” on platforms and inside trains.

The debacle sparked a severe backlash from frustrated passengers who have slammed the ongoing situation. One Sydney traveller described their commute as “absolute chaos” while another commented on overcrowded platforms and carriages “packed like sardines”.

“Bloody ridiculous station management with passengers blocking walkways, couldn’t even get on trains,” one man posted on Twitter.

Commuters are seen at Town Hall train station in Sydney. Picture: Peter Rae/AAP Image

“#sydneytrains exemplifying flustercluckage yet again,” another said, while another added: “Just another day on Sydney Trains.”

Others claimed it was just the latest in a string of regular disruptions to Sydney’s rail network.

“Honest to god the worst train service in the world are Sydney trains. We’re all waiting here in the freezing cold for trains that keep getting cancelled. I know things happen but every single week there’s something,” another said, while another added: “It’s Friday so that means it’s time for my weekly angry tweet on Sydney trains!!!! Either make your services free or make them worth travelling in!!!!!!!! We aren’t freaking lab rats.”

Yet another farce with #sydneytrains. Over 90 minutes after the town hall incident I’m sat on a train in Stanmore hearing there is a delay because there is still a train awaiting repair in town hall!?! Town hall has six lines. Surely this could be better managed.

— Whinging Pom (@WhingingPomInOz) August 22, 2019

Other passengers pointed out it took just one incident to plunge whole sections of the network into mayhem.

“1 train issue and the whole network is stuffed!” one person tweeted, with another adding: “One train needs mechanical repairs and apparently shuts down the whole Sydney train system causing delays. How come I’m paying almost $10/day for opal again ??? #sydneytrains #thieves”.

The delays are so extensive the hashtag #sydneytrains is now trending in Australia.

Passengers have claimed this is just the latest in a string of rail disruptions. Picture: Supplied

Passengers trapped on a train at Redfern station told news.com.au they were used to the chaos.

“I’m not surprised. It’s just more annoying than anything,” one female passenger said.

“There’s always something,” a male commuter said.

According to a carriage announcement on that train, the hold up was apparently due to “earlier repairs at Town Hall” which are causing “major delays across the network.”

Many frustrated public transport users faced such lengthy delays they decided to exit the train and call an Uber instead — only to find fares had soared in the face of increased demand.

“This is why I choose to work from home. Thank you for the great start to my Friday #sydneytrains. Where can I apply for my $70 Uber from Newtown to the city to be compensated and a refund for my train fare @GladysB?,” Twitter user @JordanLomax5 wrote.

And many complained of being “trapped” inside trains which were stalled on the tracks for lengthy periods.

A tweet from the T9 Sydney Trains account confirmed the repairs were “now complete”, although passengers were urged to “allow extra travel time to complete your journey”.

The delays are so significant people heading to the airport for flights or those en route to “urgent medical appointments’ were urged to contact Sydney train line Twitter accounts to make “alternate arrangements”.

The Central Coast and Newcastle Line is also impacted, and the situation has also affected bus services.

Police have directed crowds of people to replacement services outside busy Wynyard station, and regular buses have also been delayed as a result.

A Sydney Trains spokeswoman told news.com.au there are delays on the T1 North Shore and Western line and T9 Northern line due to a “hatch on top of one of our trains coming loose at Town Hall station near the overhead wiring earlier this morning”.

“Investigations into the cause are ongoing, however it appears there was damage to the hatch which may indicate the train hit an object before arriving at Town Hall station,” she said.

“For safety reasons, the train could not be moved until the hatch was secured which required power to be isolated from the specific section of track. This is a lengthy process and not like flicking a switch, and our electrical and repair crews worked hard to do this quickly and safely.

“Customers are advised to allow additional travel time, check real time apps and transportnsw.info for the latest train running and disruption information as well as listening to announcement and check indicator boards.”

WHAT WENT WRONG?

Sydney Trains boss Howard Collins apologised to affected passengers and told The Daily Telegraph workers needed to flick “Frankenstein” style switches to fix the broken down train at Town Hall this morning.

Power needed to be cut first, and then engineers were able to tackle the damaged hatch.

“We had to send men and women down tunnels, to pull big switches, to open and close them, which takes hours … it is archaic,” he told the publication.

“They (the switches) are from … the 1920s and 1930s, they are isolation switches which were probably put in when we first electrified.

“They are almost Frankenstein in their look, they do a great job, but as far as I’m concerned, the future for us … is a remote isolation switch where … services are disrupted for 15 minutes rather than three hours.”

For more information, visit www.transportnsw.info.

Originally published as Trains to run on schedule for Saturday after ‘indefinite’ delays for Friday rush hour