Train timetables are still not up to date as commuters are facing hours-long delays and hundreds of cancellations during peak hour, after a day of rail chaos on Sydney trains.
Delays on the T4 line have reached as high as six hours before peak hour, according to Transport NSW.
Other lines are experiencing delays of up to two hours, with trains stopping at city circle stations for up to 40 minutes due to signal issues and a backlog of trains moving through the stations.
Services are expected to get even worse as close to one million passengers head home in peak hour.
Up to 400 services have already been cancelled this morning, with the total number expected to reach 1000 by the end of the day, Transport Minister Jo Haylen said.
The delays are expected to continue to get progressively worse throughout the day and affect peak hour.
”This is the boa constrictor strangling our network… this is the cumulative impact of hundreds of industrial bans,” Haylen said.
“I apologise to passengers who have had their trips delayed or cancelled this morning when they are just trying to get to work or where they need to go.”
Three lines – the T8 Southern and Airport Line, the T1 North Shore and Western, and T4 Eastern Suburbs and Illawarra are the worse affected, says Transport for NSW.
Sydney Trains this morning cancelled 80 per cent of their services, with some commuters facing delays of two to three hours.
They are getting so significant that Transport for NSW Secretary Josh Murray told anyone who needs to get home to leave now.
“We are saying to vulnerable travellers, we are saying to emergency workers or those that have critical travel to leave now and not rely on afternoon peak services,” Murray said.
The industrial action is expected to seriously impact train services until Friday.
Earlier today, the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) imposed a 23km/h reduction in speeds on sections of track where trains can normally travel up to 80km/h.
The go-slow is part of a long-running pay dispute between the train workers union and the NSW government.
Frustrated commuters are facing significant delays and cancellations of multiple services.
Sydney Trains chief executive Matt Longland told 2GB radio maintenance at Bondi and Homebush had not been done overnight by members of the Combined Rail Unions, leading to delays and cancellations.
He said he said the incomplete maintenance work could cause further delays for commuters in coming hours.
“We are concerned that these delays will cascade across other lines later in the morning,” he said.
Some buses are replacing cancelled rail services, but Transport for NSW is urging people to remain at home today.
Adding to the confusion and frustration of commuters is a warning by Transport for NSW that journey information on transport apps, information screens and announcements may be incorrect.
The industrial action is starting despite the state government proposing a 15 per cent pay rise over four years after months of failed negotiations and disputes with the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU).
Transport Minister Jo Haylen yesterday announced the offer of a 13 per cent pay rise over four years, as well as an additional 1 per cent in superannuation and a further 1 per cent added through a mutual gains bargaining agreement.
The bargaining agreement would see NSW Trains and Sydney Trains merge into one entity, and totals a 15 per cent pay increase over four years.
The union has asked for a 32 per cent increase over four years.
The same offer was given to the union in December, but this will be the first time it’s presented to the workers for consideration.
RTBU NSW Branch Secretary Toby Warnes said there was still work needed to hammer out the details of the new offer.
“We haven’t seen the detail.
“There still seems to be a lot of work that needs to be done in relation to what the offer entails.”
Today’s speed reduction on the rail network is part of eight industrial actions that the RTBU will restart.
