Tripped circuit breaker caused early morning Metro blackout
Metro operators have confirmed a tripped circuit breaker — which proved to be a false alarm — caused this morning’s blackout on the new northwest line.
Hills Shire
Don't miss out on the headlines from Hills Shire. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- Sydney Metro northwest: Driverless train breaks down in tunnel
- First major test of Sydney Metro system at peak hour
- Opening day of Sydney Metro tops 100,000 commuters
- Your guide to Sydney Metro northwest
A circuit breaker tripped at Bella Vista station was responsible for the Metro blackout, which closed four stations leading into this morning’s peak hour commute.
A Metro spokesman tonight said the incident proved to be a false alarm, and “power was restored in accordance with approved safety procedures” in about one hour.
Earlier this afternoon, Endeavour Energy confirmed there was “no interruption of power” from its Rouse Hill sub station supply to the Sydney Metro network when the power went out on the Metro network about 5.20am, making six stations unusable.
Meanwhile this afternoon, the new line was been hit with yet another mishap.
A fire alarm was activated at 3pm, forcing Macquarie Park station to be evacuated and train services to skip the stop while the issue is being dealt with.
A Sydney Metro spokesman said buses ran between Macquarie University, Macquarie Park and North Ryde until the station was pronounced safe.
This morning, the power outage forced the Metro to use buses between Tallawong and Castle Hill, before electricity was restored at 6.01am and train services began again for the morning peak.
At 7.50am, a train also overshot the platform at Chatswood, causing an 11-minute delay in the service.
It’s continued a horror opening week for the Metro.
On Wednesday a Metro train broke down in a tunnel between Cherrybrook and Epping, forcing a Metro employee to manually drive the it to the nearest station.
However NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance said the problems were just “day five of bedding in a brand new rail system”, highlighting the 440,000 passengers and 1241 trips made since the line opened on Sunday.
“There have been a few minor glitches and I apologise for anyone inconvenienced by these, but people need to understand this is a brand new system,” he told The Telegraph.
“We always warned there would be teething issues but on the whole this is a phenomenal system.
“I’ve been most impressed with the recovery of the metro system from these handful of minor incidents. We’re getting on with a great job.
“The power and reliability of metro is incredible and I’m going to challenge anyone who wants to run it down. It’s an amazing, amazing system.”
This morning’s power failure across several suburbs including Rouse Hill, Kellyville, Bella Vista and Castle Hill and saw trains paralysed along the Metro line at 5.20am until Metro technicians could restore services.
However a Sydney Metro spokesman denied claims that power outages across The Hills were caused by the new rail service.
“The Metro North West Line high voltage power supply is separate and has a direct feed from the power suppliers’ main substations at Rouse Hill and Willoughby,” the spokesman said.
“Sydney Metro and its builders have been working with the two major power suppliers for many years.
“Both electricity providers can supply the maximum power demand for the entire Metro railway without impacting their customers.”
“Commuters hit out over a lack of up-to-date information about delays on the new northwest line.”
The spokesman said buses transported customers between Tallawong and Castle Hill during the outage, with Metro services between Castle Hill and Chatswood unaffected.
“The system recovered quickly — as it is designed to do — after experiencing two technical issues,” the spokesman said.
“Teething problems are to be expected on a new major railway and Sydney Metro apologises to customers.”
Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW Secretary, Alex Claassens hit out at the Metro, describing it as “the debacle that rail workers predicted it would be”.
“Commuters (are) being forced to deal with a system plagued with problems in its first week of operation,” Mr Claassens said.
“In its first week, the Sydney Metro has failed to prove it is capable of doing the two basic tasks required of a driverless train — driving and stopping. And that’s after less than a week.”
Mr Claassens said there were signs a major safety incident was going to occur.
“Since it opened on the weekend, we’ve seen the service plagued with issues every day,” he said. “These incidents are exactly why we need drivers and staff on board trains to ensure the safety of the travelling public at all times.
“Those running the Sydney Metro have refused to engage with the experts — the workers — at all during this process. It shows.”
Almost 300,000 people have used the new service in its first five weekdays — and more than 440,000 since Sunday.
The line operated 16 trains in the morning peak on Friday — the usual number of trains for the peak — with a total of 68 services running between 6.25am and 9am.
The Sydney Metro northwest, which opened to mixed reviews on Sunday, has been plagued with issues following its first public ride.
Earlier this week a train in the metro tunnel between Epping and Cherrybrook had its communications severed with the Metro Control Centre, sparking a string of delays and a
Waratahs trial standouts, Suaalii injury and a rugby dream for young gun
It’s a time he hated but this painful interlude in Waratahs young gun Henry O’Donnell’s life could well pave the way to his future success in the game. Tahs v Brumbies trial wrap
Truck driver denies negligent role, failing to stop after M1 fatal crash
A Box Hill truck driver has faced court and entered pleas for his alleged role in the death of elderly man after a crash at Cowan just after Christmas.