Windows at Central Station blind public transport commuter

Transport bureaucrats have been forced back to the drawing board as Central Station’s shiny new roof causes havoc for commuters.

Transport bureaucrats are being forced to retrofit Central Station’s shiny new roof after complaints that commuters are being forced to look directly at the sun when planning their trip.

Transport experts have joked train commuters should be given “a free pair of Ray Bans” because the afternoon sun beams through glass louvres right above the new train timetable screens.

Commuters shield their eyes from the glare of the afternoon sun at Central.

The “hockey stick” roof design has created havoc for afternoon commuters — especially those who regularly head to the Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong.

While the government says the new Grand Concourse area is supposed to make it easier for customers to connect between the new metro, light rail, suburban and intercity trains, commuters are not so convinced.

“We were thinking that they could shade the glass or have some sort of retractable shade so you could actually see the signs properly,” Sydney woman Gail Hamilton said on Friday.

“It’s a bad decision.”

Builders installing the louvred windows.

Brisbane woman Debbie Bell, who was travelling to Wollongong to visit family, said “it would be blinding in the afternoon”.

“I also think they missed the chance to use all of the space and have more information up there,” she said.

While transport expert Terry Tisdale joked that free sunglasses could be given out to commuters, NSW Labor transport spokesman Chris Minns slammed the design.

“This problem should have been blindingly obvious when the building was being designed,” he said.

“There are a lot of variables in building a train station, but the location of the sun is not one of them. It’s a bit of a disaster.”

Opposition transport spokesman Chris Minns. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Bianca De Marchi

The 15 screens were installed in April and face west.

A Sydney Trains spokeswoman said: “We are aware that for a short amount of time during the afternoon, sun glare can make the new indicator boards on the Northern Concourse difficult to read.

“We are working with our partners to explore options to mitigate the glare.”

Around 250,000 customers pass through Central Station each day.

The number of customers using the station is expected to double in the next 20 years, according to Sydney Trains’ annual report.

Two new underground metro platforms and an underground pedestrian concourse, Central Walk, are being built by construction giant Laing O’Rourke.