Action for Public Transport (N.S.W.) Inc.

Introduction

Action for Public Transport (NSW) Inc. is a transport advocacy group which has been active in Sydney since 1974. We promote the interests of beneficiaries of public transport - passengers and the wider community alike.

We make this submission on the draft for public consultation published at https://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/system/files/media/documents/2025/sydney-trains-corporate-plan-2025-26.pdf.

Discussion

Sydney Trains' Corporate Plan is a peculiar document. The title suggests it sets out the major projects proposed for the next year or two. However, the largest projects are invariably Cabinet decisions and are announced by the Minister for Transport. Such projects are few and far between - in some years, no such announcements are made. The Corporate Plan restricts its discussion to general trends and minor projects. It is not written from the passengers' viewpoint.

Page 13 calls for an "equitable" transport system - that objective is best served by extending rail transport to regions currently without, such as Northern Beaches, and enabling more cross-suburban links whereas the current system privileges journeys to / from the CBD. We approve "city shaping and precinct making" as an objective.

On page 22, "Uplift our operational capability and incident response" - the "Rail Clearways" project was a major one undertaken about twenty years ago - the aim being to separate the Sydney Trains network into four major parts so that each would not be affected by a failure in any other. The very widespread nature of recent disruptions prompts the question as to what has happened to the project's aims?




What passengers want

The popularity of Sydney Metro services through Chatswood clearly shows the value that the travelling public places on fast trips. Many residents of the Hills district who formerly rode on the Richmond line now use the metro. For example, someone who used to drive to Schofields station might now use Bella Vista. Many North Shore passengers now transfer at Chatswood - someone riding from Gordon to North Sydney might well prefer the faster trip to Victoria Cross. This is despite the long pedestrian tunnels and escalators that many metro stations have.

We think the plan should include a discussion of notable projects that directly affect passengers. Here are some matters that could interest passengers.
In no particular order:

• Anything being done to address common causes of passenger complaints.

• Altering the timetable to restore train trip speeds to at least those in 2010.

• Thousands of passengers boarding or leaving trains at Central would benefit by projects that shortened their walking distances to common destinations such as Broadway. The outstanding opportunity would be connecting Central Walk directly to Henry Deane Plaza.

• There would be opportunities at other surface stations to shorten walking distances. We strongly approve of the new concourses at Redfern and Dulwich Hill, both of which shorten walking distances.

• We also think that more should be done to improve recovery from service disruptions. Despite the availability of powerful computers and software that should be able to produce and propagate ad-hoc timetables in a few moments and despite modern communications which should allow instant communication with passengers, service disruptions all too often result in thousands of passengers stranded in trains and on stations with no certainty when they'll move and no idea when they might reach their destinations.

Conclusions

The subject Corporate Plan reads as if written strictly pursuant to a legal requirement. That could be why it contains so little information that would interest the average passenger.

Recommendations

Sections should be added to the Corporate Plan discussing how work that had been done had improved the passenger's lot and what lies ahead including Sydney Trains' vision and recommendations for projects to expand the rail network in furtherance of city shaping, emissions reduction and sustainability goals.

Procurement and commissioning processes for rolling stock need review to avoid massive delays, by error and lack of consultation, that have affected new intercity (Mariyung) and regional fleets.