How Sydney’s new metro line is reshaping weekend travel

The new $21.6 billion metro line is enticing more Sydneysiders to use trains to get to shopping districts on the weekend, with as many people passing through a metro station in the city centre on Saturdays as during the week.

Stations near shopping and dining areas around Chatswood and Macquarie Park have seen more people file through their gates at weekends since the city section of the M1 metro line opened in late August, new figures show.

About 27,300 people are also tapping on or off at Gadigal metro station in the central city on Saturdays, the same level as those on Wednesdays – typically the busiest day for travel. The number filing through the new station on Sundays is 81 per cent of that midweek.

Gadigal metro station is close to Town Hall station in the central city’s main shopping area.Credit: Janie Barrett

Gadigal metro station is near Town Hall and close to the main CBD shopping areas along Pitt and George streets.

The average daily tap-on and -offs at Chatswood and Macquarie University stations, each near large shopping centres, have risen on weekends and Wednesdays since the metro extension opened.

The number filing through Chatswood station surged 35 per cent on Saturdays – an increase of about 14,200 – to 54,800 tap-on or -offs, while those doing the same on Sundays rose by almost a third, Transport for NSW figures show.

The number of people walking in or out of Chatswood station has also risen by 15 per cent to about 59,250 on Wednesdays. The station is the busiest on the M1 line for commuters switching between metro and double-deck trains.

Sydney transport expert Mathew Hounsell said people were choosing to travel on the new metro line on weekends to get to shops, restaurants and bars because it was frequent and reliable.

“People are treating it differently to heavy rail and using it to do discretionary weekend travel,” he said.

While the number passing through Town Hall station has fallen since the metro opened, when combined with Gadigal station, more people are using trains to get to the main shopping district in the CBD. About 121,000 people filed in or out of both Town Hall and Gadigal stations on Saturdays, which is about 12,000 more than before the opening.

“We know that people want frequent and reliable public transport on weekends to access social activities,” Hounsell said.

“Sydney is better than Melbourne because we have public transport that runs every 10 minutes on weekends, not every 30 or 40 minutes.”

Sydney Metro chief executive Peter Regan said the extended line was recording “very strong” patronage on Saturdays as people used it for discretionary travel. “It’s definitely inducing demand,” he said.

The extended metro line from Tallawong to Sydenham has three times the number of people using it on weekends compared with when it ran only as far as Chatswood.

On weekdays, the line records about 210,000 passenger trips, including an average of 67,000 during the morning peak and 75,000 in the evening.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.