Bus services to the Northern Beaches are to be ramped up in response to patchy services, but increased maintenance costs and driver shortages remain a problem, according to industry players.

Transport for NSW has announced a fleet of 60 new buses will be rolled out in the Northern Beaches and Lower North Shore region and vacancies are being addressed, amid a local public transport crisis.

With no train line, bus services are the primary way to commute to and from the area, but in recent months passengers claim they are spending more time waiting in lines than travelling.

Independent Minister for Wakehurst Michael Regan said bus services needed to be improved as there was little chance of the area getting a Metro train line.

“The additional fleet will be rolled out in the coming months. I would expect between 3 – 6 months realistically,” he said. “And in addition to that we will see the repairs of the old fleet currently off road, come back into service pretty much from now and through the rest of year.

“For it to be viable [to get a Metro line] you need approximately 25,000 dwellings per station,” he added. “And the cost to build it is in the 10’s of billions. We are also not a realistic priority given that the west and south-west are growing at 100’s of thousands of dwellings and have zero public transport.”

The popular B-line bus route, introduced in 2017, is an express bus that takes passengers from the northern suburbs such as Mona Vale through the region, into Sydney’s CBD.

But, eight years on the B-line is causing more hindrance than relief, with an ongoing job vacancy issue.

Mark Dunlop, managing director of bus company Keolis Downer Northern Beaches, a leading privatised provider of buses in the area, said the firm was addressing the challenge of driver shortages.

“[The] success and high demand of the B-Line has resulted in more kilometres being driven annually than originally planned,” he said.

“This has increased maintenance needs and impacted availability of the fleet.

“Driver shortages are not new to the area and have been exacerbated in recent times by the cost of living and the mature age profile of bus drivers.”

We also need better wages. But that will put pressure on fares. It’s a vicious cycle.

He also advocated for policies promoting more affordable local housing for essential service workers, to help address the root cause of the problem.

NSW Transport, however, said it is confident that they are seeing progress being made with a decrease in driver vacancies across the Sydney Metropolitan area in 2025.

Of the newly purchased fleet, 10 of the buses are set to be double deckers fitted out for the B-line.

James Griffin, local member for Manly, said: “There are currently 154 driver vacancies across metropolitan Sydney as of 3 March 2025, down from more than 500 in April 2023.”

Other bus routes that rely on Volvo-articulated (bendy) buses, such as the 181x and 160x, have recorded a high cancellation rate of services.

NSW Transport attributed this to the “temporary removal” of 83 buses in the fleet because of cracks found in their chassis.

It said it is also investing in zero emission buses (ZEB) and will be working on an electrification project out of the Brookvale Depot over the next 12 months.

Regan described the issue of driver shortages across the state as “a vicious cycle”.

“It’s definitely a challenge and why I’m working overtime on housing solutions for them,” he added. “Retain and attract. We also need better wages. But that will put pressure on fares. It’s a vicious cycle.”

A key finding in the NSW Bus Industry Taskforce Third Report, released last May found NSW bus driver pay rates are among the lowest in the country, even though Sydney is the most expensive city in Australia to live in.

It recommended a wage subsidy package, the provision of free Opal cards and the enhancement of training and career opportunities would recognise the value of bus drivers and support employee attraction and retention.

Main image of the B-line bus. Photo by Charlotte Laidlaw.