Southwest Sydney commuters lose out under new train timetable, says Panania father
THE new train timetable has been a “downgrade of service” for southwest Sydney commuters, according to a dad caught in last week’s rail chaos.
The Express
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THE new train timetable has been a “downgrade of service” for southwest Sydney commuters, whose woes were exacerbated last week as the Sydney’s rail network descended into chaos, according to a dad caught in the crowded services.
Panania resident Matthew Hatton was one of thousands of commuters caught up in the network meltdown but says he was more fortunate than others.
“I think I was pretty lucky … the longest I had to wait was half an hour,” Mr Hatton said.
Despite commuters bearing the brunt of the meltdown on Monday and Tuesday, the hiccups on the Sydney train network continued into this week.
On Friday morning, Mr Hatton arrived at Panania train station only to be told his train had been cancelled and he would have to wait 30 minutes for the next service or take a train that doubled back to Holsworthy station in order to catch a city service.
But it was in November, when the controversial new timetable was introduced, that Mr Hatton’s gripe with Sydney’s rail system really began.
Prior to that, the regular commuter would catch one of two morning peak-hour services to work on the T8 Airport and South line from East Hills to the city centre.
Those services are now no longer available, he says.
“They’ve got rid of the two train services … now the train starts at Macarthur or Campbelltown,” Mr Hatton said, adding more often than not it was overcrowded.
“It’s a total downgrade of service for where we are.”
Since the changes, Mr Hatton said he had also noticed more delays and cancellations.
The lack of reliability means he and his partner have to set off for and leave work earlier in order to drop off and pick up their 14-month-old daughter at daycare in time.
“For me, the big one is the reliability of service. You trust that the train is going to get you there at the time it says it’s going to get you there,” he said.
“The timetable should be reflective of reality, not just some aspirational dream.”
Transport Minister Andrew Constance last week announced a review into the rail debacle which would focus on how the network “can better recover from major incidents with cumulative impacts like we’ve seen over the last few days”.
The report is expected to be completed within a fortnight.
Mr Constance and Sydney Trains apologised for the fiasco, saying a staff shortage and wild weather had led to the delays.
A further 36 peak hour services were cancelled across the network yesterday due to staff shortages.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW secretary Alex Claassens said the Transport Minister had created a “quick-fix timetable” that was “destined to fail during the most important travel hours of the day.”
“Transport workers in the southwest have given us their feedback that the new timetable is a recipe for disaster. Their feedback is currently being gathered to be included in the review, which the Minister for Transport will receive, and hopefully implement,” he said.
On Friday RTBU members voted to take industrial action as they seek a 6 per cent pay rise.