Rail line closures to force 100,000 commuters a day to catch buses

Sections of two rail lines in Sydney's south west will be shut over the Christmas holidays to allow for construction of a metro rail line, forcing up to 100,000 commuters a day to catch replacement buses.

Transport authorities plan to put on more than 200 buses a day to ferry about 100,000 people during the first four days of the closure of the Bankstown line between Campsie and Sydenham, and the Illawarra line from Hurstville to Central Station, from December 24 to 28.

Up to 90 buses a day will then operate for the rest of the closure of the Bankstown line until January 5, transporting as many as 28,000 passengers each day.

Commuters will be forced to catch buses during closures of the Bankstown line.Credit: Peter Rae

The project for the second stage of the multibillion-dollar metro rail line involves converting a 13.5-kilometre stretch of the Bankstown line.

While yet to be finalised, the closure of the Bankstown line is expected to be repeated each Christmas for the next five years. Other work to convert the line is likely to take place during weekends when Sydney Trains carry out maintenance.

Transport for NSW coordinator general Marg Prendergast said replacement buses would be running multiple routes to lessen the disruption. "We are really going to break up routes because we don't want to overload sites like Campsie station," she said.

Ms Prendergast said patronage declined over the Christmas holidays by about 35 per cent, which was why authorities wanted to take advantage of the period to begin works.

The work on the metro line at Sydenham station will also impact the Illawarra line for four days over Christmas.Credit: Kate Geraghty

"It’s important that we balance the need to convert the T3 Bankstown Line as quickly as possible, with getting people where they need to go," she said. "We are trying to minimise the impact. We do envisage that the heavy rail infrastructure works will be done in Christmas periods."

Last year the state government ditched plans for closures of the line for six weeks a year for five years, following community concern about the disruption.

Ms Prendergast said the length of a shutdown of the Bankstown line towards the end of the construction phase in late 2023, which was originally planned for up to six months, was yet to be finalised.

The conversion of the Bankstown rail corridor is part of the second stage of the $20 billion metro train line from Sydney's north west to Chatswood, the CBD, and on to Bankstown. Upgrades to 11 stations between Sydenham and Bankstown will each take about two years.