Commuters will hold their breath from Monday when the first major timetable shake-up since the 2017 debacle comes into force on Sydney’s train network.
The State Government claims there are more than 800 new services across the network, with timetables streamlined and modern work days taken into account – including the fact many are travelling later in the day and not in the traditional peak periods.
“These adjustments to the timetable are focused on making our trains more reliable and resilient so passengers have shorter wait times, faster journeys and so our train network will be able to recover sooner when there’s a critical incident,” said Transport Minister Jo Haylen.
“We know that when there’s an incident on one part of the train network it can often affect other train services too. Making our timetable simpler means there’s less chance of that happening.
“Since 2017, the way that people travel on our transport network has changed a lot. The work commute has changed and there’s greater demand for trains outside the traditional peak hour. That’s why we are making sure there are more trains running at the times when passengers need them most, particularly in the mornings between nine and 10am.”
Analysis of the timetable by the Weekender does not show any sizeable shift in services, though some timings have changed.
Stopping patterns on the T1 Western Line will be simplified to improve reliability and increase train services for some stations west of Parramatta. Some services for some stations west of Parramatta have been moved from the earlier AM peak to operate between 9am and 10am to provide passengers with more travel options outside the busiest time. Rooty Hill and Doonside will receive additional services during the busiest morning peak hour.
“A simpler timetable makes the network more reliable allowing it to recover from incidents faster. We’ll be monitoring the new timetable closely and identifying where we can make further improvements,” Sydney Trains A/Chief Executive Hayden Donoghue said.
“As with any change, we know it takes time to adjust to new ways of travelling, so we’re asking passengers to please jump online and plan their trip.”
The government will be hoping the timetable shake-up improves on-time running.
The 92 per cent target has only been met once in the AM Peak this year on the Western Line, and hasn’t been met in the PM peak for almost three years.
Troy Dodds
Troy Dodds is the Weekender's Managing Editor and Breaking News Reporter. He has more than 20 years experience as a journalist, working with some of Australia's leading media organisations. In 2023, he was named Editor of the Year at the Mumbrella Publish Awards.