Five years and $4 billion later, the verdict on our new intercity trains

Since the first new intercity trains arrived in NSW in late 2019, commuters have been through one pandemic, three premiers, four state transport ministers and eight Taylor Swift albums.

So was the $4.03 billion Mariyung fleet – beset by industrial disputes and safety concerns, including doors flying open during testing – worth the wait?

Train fans play Monopoly onboard the first journey of the new intercity fleet from Newcastle to Sydney on Tuesday.Credit: Dean Sewell

The answer for train fans and disembarking cruise ship passengers catching the first Sydney service from Newcastle at 8.21am on Tuesday was a resounding yes.

“Have you ever seen the love of your life, for the first time?” asked Henry Whittaker, a young Sydney train enthusiast who woke up at 3am to travel with his friends to Newcastle to be among the first to board the new service. “I can’t describe it.”

With better air conditioning and more plush seating than the older, graffiti-riddled V-set trains that came before them, the Mariyung fleet promises customers a more comfortable journey.

However, perhaps not on this particular trip: the first service, which arrived at Sydney’s Central Station at 10.55am, was packed with dozens of train fans and Transport for NSW staff.

Commuter Dwaran Ramesh, who friends joke is a future transport minister thanks to his love of trains, found the journey from Newcastle very comfortable. He especially liked the faux leather arm rests, but he had one complaint: tap faucets in the toilets were too far away from the sink.

Accessible seating on the new intercity train.Credit: Dean Sewell

“Water goes all over the counter-top,” he said. “I feel like they overengineered it, that the people engineering it didn’t actually try and use it. But apart from that, the train’s great.”

The name of the fleet, Mariyung, is the Darug word for emu. Livery in the shape of the animal lines its exterior.

“Like Mariyung, this train runs through ancient lands from Awabakal to Gadigal countries and many more in between,” plays a video on the train screens.

The fleet is made up of 62 South Korean-made trains. After the stock for the Central Coast line was approved by the rail safety regulator last week, Sydney Trains expects services to the Blue Mountains and Kiama to begin by the second half of 2025.

Bowing to union demands during a long-running industrial dispute in 2022, the former Coalition government committed to modifying the Mariyung fleet to include new CCTV cameras, a guard door that could open while the train was moving, and more accessibility features.

Labor member for Gosford Liesl Tesch, who uses a wheelchair and is the parliamentary secretary for disability inclusion, hailed the fleet as the most accessible in NSW.

“There’s great space for wheelchair users, there’s lots of accessibility features, the emergency points are there for us … we’ve got great Braille, improved signage, we’ve got a hearing loop on the train.”

The double-decker carriages feature wide two-by-two seating, with tables and charging ports. The new fleet has more storage space for bicycles and luggage, which was already overflowing with bags of cruise passengers travelling on to Sydney, most of whom weren’t aware they were on any sort of special service.

But the celebrations on Tuesday morning were in the shadow of ongoing union negotiations between the Rail, Tram, and Bus Union (RTBU) and the state government.

Having narrowly avoided a complete shutdown of the city’s rail network less than a fortnight ago, the government has only days left to reach an agreement before the union moves to limit the distance drivers travel between Monday and Wednesday next week.

“Conversations are continuing, and every morning the government and unions are meeting at the highest level,” Transport Minister Jo Haylen said after the journey. “The unions have made clear their intentions around those bans. Of course, the government’s planning for all scenarios.”

The minister found support from at least one union member on board: as the train approached Central, its guard – a position not included in the Coalition government’s original plans for the fleet – took to the train’s announcement system to express his support.

“On behalf of the Rail, Tram, and Bus Union, we sincerely thank the Minns government, Transport Minister Jo Haylen and Sydney Trains,” he said. “[They] have worked closely with the RTBU in the last 12 months to have this passenger service today, unlike the previous Coalition government and rail entity.”

The train’s return service to Newcastle was delayed by three minutes as train fans debated whether to get back on board or go to bed. Those who returned were cheered on by hundreds of fans and staff, and Transport Co-ordinator General Howard Collins took a photo of an employee standing proudly in front of the train’s sign: “First Train in Service.”

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