The T3 Line between Bankstown and Sydenham will finally close from Monday for at least 12 months, increasing commuting times for 60,000 daily passengers by as much as 25 minutes.
A fleet of 100 new buses, known as the Southwest Link, will replace the trains across three dedicated routes. The pink buses will be free of charge to passengers, whose commuting time will be increased, and in some cases, doubled.
Following threats of industrial action from the Rail, Tram and Bus Union, plans to close parts of the Bankstown line this week were delayed. Southwest Link buses will continue to run alongside the existing train service between Lidcombe and Campsie until September 30, before replacing the service completely.
According to the NSW Department of Transport when the project is complete, the existing Metro Line from Tallawong to Sydenham will be extended through to Bankstown, with trains running every four minutes during peak times.
NSW Transport Minister, Jo Haylen, acknowledged the difficulties of the disruptions for all T3 commuters, including university students.
“We know it’s gonna be difficult for everybody, including students that are trying to get to their classes,” she told Central News.
“We totally understand this is going to be a very painful period, but I’d say this: it will be worth it in the end, because Metro will be fast.
“It will be reliable and will have more frequent services. We know this is going to be a difficult period, but it’s also one of the reasons why we’ve made the Southwest Link buses free.”
However, Roydon Ng, from the SaveT3 campaign, said traffic assessments had not been conducted effectively to compensate for extra buses and cars on the road, especially in the streets surrounding Lidcombe station.
“We’re gonna see potentially a doubling of private vehicles, buses cramming in through that single Tooheys Lane to get to Lidcombe Station,” Ng claimed.
Despite the creation of a new T6 Link between Bankstown and Lidcombe, he believes commuters will opt to drive the short distance instead of taking the train link.
“There’s no incentive to do so. They’re just all gonna drive to Lidcombe Station, which means Lidcombe town centre’s gonna be swamped with additional drivers from Birrong and Yagoona, for example,” said Ng.
Jo Haylen addresses the press at Central Station on the T3 closure. Photo: Transport NSW.
Ng also said Sydney Trains should have a greater focus on upgrading signalling on existing train networks.
“Upgrading to digital signalling is much cheaper and delivers the same benefits as converting existing lines to Metro,” he added.
“But then with the signalling upgrades, they’re more subtle and more discrete. That’s probably why there’s arguably been a lack of investment in fast tracking signalling upgrades as opposed to the big ribbon cutting of Metro.”
Additional reporting by Mahir Munot. Video by Mahir Munot and Seb Tan.
Main image by Caitlin Maloney.
