More delays are expected on Sydney’s rail network this evening following yesterday's chaos caused when a high-voltage powerline came down on a train in the city's west. Trains are running on a reduced timetable through this evening's peak.
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:00It is starting to get busier but no more than you'd expect at this time of day.
00:06I did see the platform to the airport just before which was packed and no indication of when the next train would arrive.
00:12Authorities are certainly hoping that commuters will heed their warnings to opt for alternate forms of transport this evening
00:20because trains are running at a reduced capacity instead of one every four minutes as would be typical during peak hour.
00:27People may be waiting 20 to 30 minutes between services and on all services except for the T4 line the trains will be stopping at every station.
00:37So it will take people significantly longer to get home tonight.
00:41Now the drama began yesterday afternoon when a train near Homebush became entangled in wiring tearing down some overhead cables, high voltage cables.
00:52And it happened in a crucial part of the network, one that all lines except for the T4 and South Coast lines passed through.
01:00Six of those lines had to be shut in the middle of peak hour, which meant commuters faced long delays to get home.
01:07And despite emergency repairs being carried out through the night, it wasn't until about 8 o'clock this morning that all of those lines had reopened.
01:15So people were also affected on the way to work. Here's what some commuters had to say just before.
01:21So I come from Wyoming, Central Coast, and I've left two hours early to get to the airport because of the train.
01:30Are you a bit nervous about making your flight?
01:33I had no problems. There was no delay. So I've got time to kill.
01:38I've been late for, this morning I had classes, and I've been late for those classes, so it's not bad.
01:43And because of it, I have some bottom marks on my class, so it's very bad.
01:49And Alex, any more information on what actually caused all this?
01:53Well, Joe, the investigation remains ongoing, but Transport for New South Wales says at this stage they don't believe the lines came down because of wind or the weather.
02:03This particular section of the cabling is inspected routinely every three months.
02:09The last inspection was on the 9th of April, and they say there was no sign of any fault there.
02:15Transport Minister, John Graham, appeared to point the finger at industrial action this afternoon.
02:22He said that that action had created a large backlog of maintenance work, which authorities were still trying to work through.
02:30The Premier has insisted the Government is doing everything it can to get to the bottom of this.
02:36There's specific technical reasons as to why there was a major shutdown on the transport network yesterday evening.
02:43And I think the commuting public would have been understanding of those circumstances if there hadn't been a persistent lack of reliability on the public transport network over a long period of time.
02:54In fact, I think their patience has worn thin, and I want them to know that the Government has heard that message absolutely loud and clear.
03:02For a major international city like Sydney, it relies on public transport to work, and that public transport must be reliable.
03:11Well, the Premier has announced Monday will be a fair, free day in a bid to try and, I guess, appeal to commuters.
03:21He's also announced a short, sharp, independent review looking into, you know, what happened, but also the broader punctuality issues with the network,
03:33as well as how World Transport for New South Wales has communicated during these disruptions.
03:39So, he's been stressing his apologies, saying that it's not good enough, that the performance has been a substandard,
03:47but acknowledging that patience is wearing thin with commuters.
03:52The good news, hopefully, is that tomorrow authorities believe trains will be running to a normal timetable.
03:58So, let's do this on the normal timetable.