Epping to Chatswood rail shutdown: Extra support services
SYDNEY’s long-suffering train commuters are being warned to brace themselves for more disruption with the closure of a major train line in the city’s northwest within weeks. But more services were announced today.
North Shore
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THE State Government today announced extra train services to compensate for the seven-month Epping to Chatswood rail shutdown from September 30.
There will be more services for stations north of Chatswood on the T1 North Shore Line and double the number of express trains running to and from the Sydney CBD via Strathfield during the peak for Central Coast customers.
Customers from Normanhurst to Cheltenham travelling to and from Central at peak times are set to save 20 minutes each day by catching limited stop T1 Northern Line services via Strathfield.
Meadowbank, West Ryde and Rhodes stations will receive additional morning and afternoon peak-hour trains. This will also free up space on adjacent services, which will benefit other customers on the T1 Northern Line.
Transport Minister Andrew Constance said the adjustments would allow the T1 North Shore and T1 Northern Lines to operate separately.
“Our focus has been to ensure services continue to meet demand and complement Station Link and other regular buses,” Mr Constance said.
“We have a challenge here, we’re not hiding from it,” he said. “We know there will be disruption but once Sydney Metro opens in the second quarter of next year, there will be a new world class metro service between Sydney’s fast growing north west and Chatswood.”
IN OTHER NEWS
The shutdown will force up to 20,000 commuters a day to catch replacement buses or drive.
There will be more than 120 new Station Link buses operating on seven routes. Services will be turn-up-and-go with connecting services running every six minutes in peak hour.
Leaked documents show the $8.3 billion metro line from Rouse Hill to Chatswood won’t be opened to passenger services until early May next year.
Opposition Transport spokeswoman Jodi McKay predicts there will be an “lots of confusion” at train stations, Station Link bus stops and on roads during the shutdown.
“You’ll be getting Central Coast commuters affected too. They have not been told about it,” Ms McKay said.
“I’m yet to be convinced the new (train and bus) timetables are going to work because it’s going to reverberate through the networks … and particularly given we have a timetable that already doesn’t work.
“The government hasn’t shown it can run a train system as it is, let alone a massive change like this.”
Ryde Mayor Jerome Laxale said “a lot of the community” were “still in the dark” about the shutdown changes.
“I went to a Ryde Riverside business forum in the last month and there were no representatives from the State Government there,” he said. “I was fielding all the questions about the rail shutdown, like ‘when’s it starting’, ‘how long will it go for’ and ‘how long are the bus routes?’
“The business community across Macquarie Park and the broader business community, mostly at the small to medium-size level, still don’t have the information they need to deal with this.
“This whole shutdown period will be chaotic for the business community and the local community. The government promised road upgrades in 2017, and the most important of these won’t be delivered in time for the shutdown.”
IN OTHER NEWS
Key changes on Sydney’s train network from September 30:
T1 North Shore Line
● Services which currently operate via the Epping to Chatswood rail line will be replaced with trains starting or ending at Gordon, Hornsby or Berowra
● More AM peak-hour services to the city for customers at Mount Kuring-Gai, Mount Colah, Hornsby and all stations from Wahroonga to Roseville
● Customers who catch trains from Gordon to Roseville will also have more services
T1 Northern Line
● Current services between Hornsby and the city via Chatswood will be replaced by limited-stop services via Strathfield. These services will start or terminate at Central during peak times. At all other times, trains will directly connect to Wynyard, Town Hall and North Shore stations via Strathfield and Central
● Most Normanhurst to Cheltenham customers travelling to the CBD in the morning peak will have faster or similar journey times compared with today
● Two extra services per hour in the morning peak and a doubling of trains in the evening peak for Rhodes, Meadowbank and West Ryde
● All peak-hour services to operate as eight-car trains to improve capacity and comfort for all T1 Northern Line customers
Central Coast and Newcastle Line
● Double the number of express services operating to and from the Sydney CBD via Strathfield during peak times, with an express train every 15 minutes instead of every 30 minutes
● Customers will still have the option to catch direct trains to and from Sydney CBD via the North Shore, with no change to the current number of peak services
● The current trial of a fast-train service operating between Newcastle and Sydney will continue
T8 Airport & South Line
● Revesby will receive two more Sydney CBD-bound express services running via airport stations in the morning peak. By catching these services Revesby customers could save about nine minutes per trip or up to 45 minutes a week, travelling to the Airport or other popular stations, like Mascot and Green Square.
* Customers can plan their trips from early September at transportnsw.info
* For information on the Station Link bus services visit mysydney.nsw.gov.au/stationlink