More chaos on Sydney trains after Wednesday’s major disaster

An urgent wiring issue in Sydney’s west has led to delays and changed stops at train lines across the city in yet another blow for passengers.

Train chaos continues in Sydney. Picture: Richard Dobson

Some Sydney train services are returning to normal after an urgent wiring issue on one western line led to major delays across a number of train lines.

Commuters were left stranded on Saturday morning – just days after the city’s entire network went down due to a communication error – as an urgent wiring issue in Panania, in Sydney’s west, led to delays and changes to lines including Bankstown and Macarthur.

The issue first occurred on Friday afternoon, and Transport for NSW has told commuters via social media it estimates repairs to be completed by 7pm on Saturday.

But, it added: “This can be subject to change. We will provide updates as they become available to us.”

Pictured are commuters waiting patiently for a delayed train to leave the platform at Central Station in Sydney on Wednesday. Picture: Richard Dobson

Before 4pm on Saturday it was announced the T1 Western Line services would be returning to normal.

There was no update on the T1 North Shore line, which was also affected by the issue.

Other delays and stop changes remain in place on the T2 Inner West and Leppington Line, T3 Bankstown Line, T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra Line, T7 Olympic Park Line and the T8 Airport and South Line.

#WesternLine services are returning to normal pic.twitter.com/qVvCChcogP

— T1 Sydney Trains (@T1SydneyTrains) March 11, 2023

On Saturday morning, a Sydney trains spokesperson told news.com.au that “services on the T8 Airport and South line have been suspended between Kingsgrove and Glenfield as repairs continue on the overhead wires at Panania.

“Emergency repair works commenced last night, including the removal of the affected train. Teams are currently working on the reconstruction of the overhead wiring.

“Buses continue to replace trains in both directions between Kingsgrove and Glenfield on the T8 Airport & South Line.

“Passengers are advised to allow plenty of extra travel time or consider using alternative transport.”

T8 Airport & South Line trains are still running between the city and Kingsgrove in both directions, while trains heading to the city from Macarthur and Campbelltown will now terminate at Liverpool.

The issue first occurred yesterday, with a train pictured stuck between stations

“Customers may need to change at Liverpool to complete their journey,” the spokesperson said.

“Sydney Trains apologises for the inconvenience and thanks our customers for their patience.”

Adding to the chaos, transport apps are experiencing technical errors, displaying wrong information and times, prompting Transport for NSW’s official Twitter calling for commuters to “tweet” them directly if they required assistance.

Commuters have taken up the call, now reporting a “bottleneck” of trains waiting to arrive at Central Station.

“Hi guys. Central is a mess right now. Several platforms have trains piled up behind each other, some with more than three,” one user wrote to the TrainsInfo account.

Another said it took about 30 minutes to “crawl the distance from Erskineville to Town Hall” – a commute that would usually take half as long.

“Train guard says there’s a ‘bottle neck’ of grains attempting to enter the city. Lots of trains are parked at, or near Central station,” he wrote.

Our train took about 30 minutes to crawl the small distance from Erskineville to Town Hall. Train guard says there’s a ‘bottle neck’ of trains attempting to enter the city. Lots of trains are parked at, or near, Central station. #SydneyTrainspic.twitter.com/g07P7ijdt9

— Brenden Wood (@BrendenWood) March 11, 2023

Other commuters were quick to slam the second round of rail chaos in a matter of days, with many reporting being stuck on trains or at stations and missing important appointments and events.

“The most unreliable train system, stuck on a train for more than half an hour now with no movement,” one social media user said.

Another said they were “exhausted by such horrible service”, and another said NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet should “hang your head in shame” for the second disruption.

Some furious people at Olympic Park station thanks to more Sydney train delays. Brought here on a replacement rail bus to get a train, but the train hasn’t arrived. Some waiting an hour. This couple missed The Rocky Horror Picture Show ☹️ pic.twitter.com/KOL2py2PMl

— Isobel Roe (@isobelroe) March 11, 2023

“Sydney Trains failing to meet the bare minimum of service. Just a reminder: We vote this month,” another wrote.

On Friday, more than 400 passengers were stuck on hot carriages between Revesby and Panania station for almost two hours after power lines fell on the roof.

Rescue workers had to rip panels off the stranded Sydney train so passengers could be evacuated through the driver’s compartment and down to the tracks.

The issue is ongoing.

It happened just days after thousands of commuters were stranded at train stations for hours on Wednesday night after a network-wide component malfunction at Sydney Olympic Park during peak hour.

The shutdown started after Transport was advised the Digital Train Radio System (DTRS), which connects the train crew with the signaller and the rail operations centre, had failed at 2.45pm on Wednesday.

The outage lasted just over an hour, but Sydney Trains staff were left scrambling into the early hours of the morning to get scheduled trips back up and running.