Sydney’s teetering train system overhauled

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The recurring outages in Sydney’s rail network will be the subject of an independent and extensive investigation.

Sydney rail commuters endured a year of delays, disruptions and widespread outages, including a digital radio system failure on 8 March that brought all trains to a halt for 90 minutes at the start of the afternoon peak. I came.

“It is clear that our heavy rail network is facing significant problems,” Transport Minister Joe Halen said on Friday.

“After 12 years of inaction from the previous Liberal government, passengers are facing shutdowns, cancellations and delays across the network, with punctuality at its worst since the pandemic.”

A review by former National Transportation Commission Chairman Carolyn Walsh will examine the causes of recurring infrastructure problems and seek to find “quick and lasting solutions” and reforms to mitigate future problems. increase.

The terms of the contract will be settled in the next few days, the government said.

March was a particularly bad month for the city’s rail network.

Two days after the radio system crashed, a live overhead line landed on a train in Panania, trapping 500 people on the train for 90 minutes, halting traffic in the section and causing delays across the wider network. .

Multiple signal failures in the Strathfield area last Saturday left thousands of commuters stranded on platforms and caused delays across the network that afternoon and evening.

That’s because the new Mings Labor government is trying to divert anger over Saturday’s scheduled toll hike to the previous government and its “privatization addiction.”

Transurban is increasing tolls on five Sydney toll roads, including the Eastern Distributor and the Cross City Tunnel, by around 1.8%. This is an anomalous price increase due to rising CPI.

Prime Minister Chris Mins said Friday: “Every toll increase is a reminder of the previous government’s obsession with privatization.

The new government promises structural toll reforms and weekly caps starting at $60 in 2024.

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