Welcome to the next seven months! Huge queues of commuters stretch across streets as they wait for replacement buses – after train line shut down until NEXT YEAR
- Underground rail link between Chatswood and Epping closed for seven months
- Closure for construction work for new single-deck Metro Northwest rapid link
- Buses have replacing trains with daily delays for commuters tipped to be chaotic
- An estimated 20,000 people use the Chatswood to Epping line on a daily basis
Commuters returning to work after the long weekend were met with peak hour chaos on Tuesday morning with streams of buses replacing trains in Sydney’s north.
Frustrating delays are set to continue well into 2019 while the rail line between Chatswood and Epping is closed in preparation for the Metro Northwest rapid link.
Buses started replacing trains from Sunday, resulting in extensive queues at major train stations on the North Shore Line from 7am.
Commuters piling on a bus this morning at Epping train station – trains are not running to Chastwood and the north shore line due to the construction of the Metro Northwest rapid link
Peak hour commuters at Epping preparing to catch temporary buses on Tuesday morning
Commuters in peak hour at Epping this morning who are forced to catch buses until April – the Metro Northwest link should be completed by April next year
‘Ultimately everyone is going to go through some short-term pain for long-term gain in the corridor,’ New South Wales Transport Minister Andrew Constance said.
The Sydney Metro Northwest rapid link could be up and running by as early as April next year, but in the meantime authorities have asked commuters to plan their journeys and use the replacement services rather than driving.
The new line is the last piece of the $8.3billion project that includes new stations, new track, maintenance facilities and operations centres.
The switch to buses will add 20 minutes to commuters’ journeys.
NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance (middle) has warned Sydneysiders to help prevent transport chaos as a major train line in the city’s north shuts down for seven months
A total of 120 high-frequency bright-pink buses have been added on routes between closed stations, tacking on 20 minutes to commuters’ journeys
A total of 20,000 people use the Chatswood to Epping line every day.
‘Businesses and the community still don’t know the full effect of what will happen here. It will be chaos on roads here in Ryde,’ Mayor of Ryde Jerome Laxall said.
Other services to be affected include Hornsby express services no longer stopping at Town Hall or Wynyard.
Commuters will have to change at Central, and two more morning express services will be added to the Revesby line heading into the city.
‘Businesses and the community still don’t know the full effect of what will happen here. It will be chaos on roads here in Ryde,’ Mayor of Ryde Jerome Laxall said
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