A Transport for NSW statement encouraged Sydneysiders to “please delay all non-essential travel or consider using other transport where possible”.
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“If you must travel by train, please allow plenty of extra travel time, listen to announcements, and check information screens and transport apps before getting on trains. Delays and gaps in service are likely to be experienced for the duration of the morning peak period.”
The train at the centre of the debacle was at Homebush when it became entangled in the wire, causing a power outage at Strathfield – a critical point in the network – that rippled across most of the city shortly after 2.30pm on Tuesday.
Emergency crews were called to isolate the power, clear people from the area, and eventually evacuate passengers from the stranded train carriages.
The crews worked overnight to remove the defective train from the tracks and complete extensive repairs to the overhead wiring at Homebush before the power was switched back on about 7.20am.
Transport Minister John Graham said the restoration of power to the train network meant services would gradually return to normal at Strathfield, but significant delays were still expected all day.
“That will allow trains now to start to run through these six lines,” Graham told the Today show.
Buses replace trains at affected stations around StrathfieldCredit: Janie Barrett
“That’ll take us a little bit of time to get those trains through, but that will mean the busing operation that’s currently in place between Lidcombe and Ashfield will no longer be required in the way it has over recent hours so it’s a major step forward, but this has been a huge disruption over the course of yesterday afternoon and this morning.”
Graham said all available buses had been deployed to replace trains, but queues of several hundred metres for replacement buses had been reported at some stations.
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“This has been incredibly frustrating and preparations have been under way overnight,” Graham said.
“We’ve had every available bus out on the network, but the reason we’re telling people to avoid travel is [because] this is a big impact on the network. We’ve had these incidents before, but it’s where it’s happened that’s really had the impact here.”
At Ashfield station, where passengers were diverted via bus or were asked to switch trains, there were blank screens and confused looks on Wednesday morning.
One passenger, Hartwing Lupeitu’u, was up at 4am and out the door quickly, but encountered long lines and “too many people” at Lidcombe from 6am.
His boss had said “as long as you get to work” he’d be fine.
“And now I’m still waiting,” he said.
Tom Yousif, who installs art in galleries and was trying to get from Parramatta to Leichhardt, said he had no other way to get to work.
“I’m a casual worker, so I’m going to lose my whole day’s wage,” he said.
“How long is this even going to go on for? The train system in Australia might as well be redundant, there’s no point for it because these problems are going to keep arising.”
Vacuum repairer Greg Drinan was stuck in a long line for city-bound replacement buses at Lidcombe.
“It’d be about an hour, because the queue starts about 400 metres down that way,” he said of the waiting time.
With Emily Kowal, Cindy Yin and Michael Ruffles
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