Overcrowding on inner west line to continue for years after extra trams postponed

Today’s Sydney Morning Herald has revealed that Transport for NSW was supposed to buy new trams mid last year to stop the overcrowding on Sydney’s inner west line. A year later and there has been no action on a move which could mean up to 1200 more passengers on the light rail at peak commute times.

More documentation shows that even if the purchase is made tomorrow, it would still take 18 months before all trams are in action.

The Central Station to Dulwich Hill line has seen a jump of almost three times the number of commuters in the last three years to 10 million. Having more trams will mean services can run every six minutes instead of every eight minutes and be three minutes faster during off peak periods. That would save Transport for NSW 67 per cent of complaints related to overcrowding on the line.

“It wasn’t bad enough that commuters in the inner west have had their buses privatised, now they also have to wait years before any new trams can be added to ease overcrowding on the light rail. This is just unacceptable and typical of a government focused on short term gain,” says RTBU NSW Tram and Bus Division Secretary, David Babineau.

“It’s a shame that the components have not been manufactured locally, maybe something could have been done to alleviate these issues if there were. Unlike some other states and territories, it seems the NSW Government is not interested in supporting Australian based industries.”

To read the full article from the Sydney Morning Herald, please click here.