The train chaos that caused Sydney’s rail network to come to a standstill over the weekend – leaving thousands of commuters stranded – was caused by a balloon.
The disruption was initially blamed on a ‘technical issue’, but NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance has since clarified the incident was triggered by a rogue balloon.
Mr Constance told The Sydney Morning Herald a metallic balloon had found its way into one of the underground tunnels at Wynyard station on Friday and caused an overhead electricity wire to short.
People were stranded on platforms (pictured) for hours on Saturday after a balloon triggered a computer glitch
He said the balloon getting caught in the overhead wiring meant that the whole IT network was affected, triggering a ‘major incident’.
‘This was coupled with a software failure at Transport for NSW that led to the rebooting of the entire IT network, he said.
The Transport Minister added there were elements of the system that failed to reboot properly, resulting in a major impact for trains customers throughout Saturday.
‘This led to a major incident in which Sydney Trains had to disembark passengers in a tunnel,’ he said.
The Australian reported the city’s train system came to a crashing to a halt for most of the day on Saturday, leaving many passengers stranded or stuck on trains between platforms.
Many passengers took to social media to share in their frustration of being stranded or stuck on crowded platforms with a lack of information about what was causing the delays.
Many passengers took to social media (left) to share in their frustration of being stranded or stuck in stationary trains (right) for hours
Video also emerged of an unhappy train driver who vented about his frustration at the lack of communication.
‘We have no further information, but our management feels that you are reassured by it,’ the driver can be heard telling passengers.
‘You won’t see our management, but they want you to be reassured by me making announcements telling you we have no further information. Thank you.’
As a result of the glitch, the service’s communications indicator boards, real time apps and train running information were either unavailable or incorrect
Many commuters were left stranded on platforms with no communication (pictured) about the train network
Sydney Trains initially told people delays were due to urgent rewiring at Wynyard station but it wasn’t clear what triggered the repairs that resulted in trains being suspended trains in both directions.
As a result of the glitch, the service’s communications indicator boards, real time apps and train running information was either unavailable or incorrect.
The Transport Minister told The Sydney Morning Herald that the network was taking steps to prevent a similar incident from happening again.
Thousands of unhappy commuters (pictured) were forced to seek alternate forms of transport
Transport Minister Andrew Constance said the incident was triggered by a flyaway balloon
‘I have now requested the agency provide a list of measures to mitigate against a repeat of what we saw [on Saturday],’ he said.
‘I expect to see this advice quickly given the unacceptable inconvenience caused.’
Daily Mail Australia has reached out to the Transport Minister’s office for comment.