Shortages of bus drivers before Sydney train line shuts down
Time is running out to hire enough rail replacement bus drivers before work beings on a busy Sydney train line. The Bankstown line is due to shut within three months so tracks can be converted for metro services. The government is still trying to find scores of drivers, advertising the jobs as an extra source of income for cash-strapped Sydneysiders.
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00:00Maneuvering these mammoths off the road takes practice.
00:10Two hundred bus drivers are needed to run the pink South West Link service.
00:15It'll replace trains between Sydenham and Bankstown for a year, while the line is converted
00:19for driverless Metro trains.
00:21Someone with a car licence can take up to six to eight weeks to be fully competent and
00:26trained.
00:27340 drivers have been recruited so far, leaving 60 positions vacant.
00:31So the going rate is $70,000 per annum or roughly $35 per hour.
00:37The union says that's not enough.
00:39You would do a lot of other work and occupations that pay that much plus more before having
00:46to put up with the issues in which bus drivers put up with.
00:49We're offering a $6,000 sign-up bonus.
00:52With the cost of living hitting households, the government says people looking for a second
00:56job should consider an office on wheels.
00:59Parents who are looking for extra cash to take on part-time or flexible shifts as well.
01:05Alison Smith is a new recruit.
01:07What did you do before?
01:09I was doing disability support.
01:10It's great to see female drivers taking up the opportunity.
01:12Oh, the customers love the female drivers.
01:15The government previously said the South West Link would begin between July and October.
01:19But it looks more like towards September, October time.
01:23Despite the yet-to-be-recruited drivers needing up to two months training, the minister insists
01:28the service will be ready.
01:29I'm confident that we will have those drivers.
01:32Of course, transport for New South Wales has contingencies in place.
01:36Even with the South West Link running at full capacity, the service will take longer than
01:40the train.
01:41Commuters are being warned to allow extra time to travel.
01:44It will add several minutes, if not tens of minutes of time to your journey.
01:49Tens of thousands of journeys a day are depending on the recruitment drive.