Tag: TfNSW Page 1 of 4

If you’re looking for the official guide you can find it here.

I was encouraged to put together this guide by a mate who recently had cause to take his bike on the train from Sydney to Newcastle and reached out to me to understand the best way to do this. This was pre-Mariyung launch and so I explained that there was a couple of ways to approach this problem but broadly, he had the following options:

Take the XPT – Bad idea – this would require putting your bike in a special cardboard bike box, making a phone call and paying extra money.
Take the V-set – Bad idea – V-Sets have comfy seats and a certain mid-century style but they lack room for bikes. There are bike hooks in one carriage per 4 car set but they can be hard to find in the rush of boarding, are extremely awkward to use and wouldn’t fit his cargo bike anyway.
Take the Oscar – Good idea!

Up until fairly recently Oscars rarely ran north of Wyong but that is no longer the case. Generally, I don’t like spending the 3 hour trip on one because of the narrower and less comfortable seats, but there’s no denying that they have much larger and more usable toilets, wheelchair/pram accessible seating and, crucially, space to park a cargo bike. It’s as simple as wheeling it on and parking it in the vestibule, much as you would on any suburban trainset. Not ideal on trains that are very crowded and have lot of people getting on and off all the time, but perfectly fine for the run up to Newcastle.

The only problem was, how was a layperson like my mate suppose to know all of this AND know before they got the station what kind of rolling stock would be operating the service they were hoping to catch.

Enter ‘The Unofficial Guide to Taking your Bike on the train in NSW’.

At the Station

Before you even think about leaving the house to head on your trip, the first decision you need to make is if you’re going to take your bike with you or leave it at the station. If you’re leaving it at the station, you’ve got three options:

Locking your bike to a standard bike loop – If no bike loops are available, consider a friendly fence post or parking sign. At most stations I wouldn’t recommend doing this overnight.
Locking your bike up in a secure shed – TfNSW have started rolling out secure bike parking. It’s undercover, has 24 hour CCTV and requires swiping a registered opal card to access. I haven’t used these but they seem pretty great and I would definitely give one a go overnight. You can find out where they are and how to register your opal card for access here. I’ve spotted them in the wild at West Ryde and Schofields.
Locking your bike up in a private ‘bike locker’ – These are older and apparently there’s 830 of them across 110 train stations. You might have spotted the big green boxes around and about. These can be privately hired on a month-by-month basis here, which probably isn’t much use unless you’re doing so as part of a regular commute.

Bike Shed and Bike Locker side by side. Credit: TfNSW.

Okay, so you’ve decided to take your bike with you. You’ll be pleased to know that this is free of charge on all Opal accepting train services run by Sydney Trains or NSW Trainlink. Gone are the days of theoretically having to pay a child’s fare for your bike during peak hour!

Next step, getting onto the platform. In days gone by, the CityRail map used to have little wheelchair icons to indicate which stations had a lift (or, presumably, a ramp). That’s gone in the name of legibility so now you’ll have to head to the TfNSW website and look up your train station. Scroll down to accessibility and if it says ‘Lift’ than there is lifted access from the street onto the platform. If not, you’ll probably need to be able to drag your bike up and/or down the stairs but you might get lucky with a ramp (Hi Broadmeadow).

The glorious final iteration of the CityRail network map is cluttered, but you can’t fault it for providing station detail!

Suburban Sydney Trains

If you’re planning on boarding a suburban Sydney Train there really isn’t too much to worry about. Some trains will have slightly more roomy vestibules but all will accommodate you and your bike. There are a couple of standard approaches I’ve witnessed to taking your bike on the train:

Sit in the side facing seats vestibule with your bike in front of you
Stand between the doors holding onto your bike while it rests against a pole
Kickstand the bike upright or secure it to a pole and then sit down in the vestibule

There’s pros and cons to each but I think getting as far away from the doors as possible is going to make your trip more pleasant, particularly if you’re expecting the train to be somewhat crowded.

Sydney Metro

Much the same as taking your bike on Sydney Trains. The first or last doors have some seats that flip up and tend to have a bit more room. Watch out these things can get crammed in peak hour.

Intercity NSW Trains

Okay this is where it gets interesting. The first thing you’ll need to find out is what type of train will be operating your service. The easiest way to do this is to use one of the various trip planning apps. All these apps use the same data feed so just pick one that shows the information you want in a format you like. I personally use and recommend TripView. AnyTrip is also very cool but probably more so for enthusiasts than the casual user. If the trip planning tool you are using doesn’t tell you what kind of train is running your service, pick a different one.

Personally I wouldn’t favour spending three hours on an Oscar, but if you’re travelling with a bike it’s a solid option.

There are about half a dozen different kinds of intercity rolling stock which will affect how you take your bike onboard and how annoying doing so is. You can check out their features and even floorplans on this handy webpage. Here they are in approximate order from worst to best experience:

V-Set (also known as an ‘Intercity train’)

The V-Set is hands down my favourite train. They’re the oldest passenger trains running in NSW dating as far back as 1970 and they ooze mid-century class. I’ve heard them described as the ‘poor-man’s business class’ for the well-padded seats, carpeted walls and coat hooks. Just try to avoid using the bathroom and don’t forget you’ll need to pull the train door open when you’re getting off!

The V-Set might show up in your app of choice as an ‘Intercity train’. They can be found travelling to Newcastle or the Blue Mountains. Expect them to be retired from service by 2026 (although they said that about 2023 and here we are…).

One carriage per 4 cars should have bike hooks. Good luck figuring out which one it is. I haven’t actually used these before but I’ve seen them and it looks hard. Everything on a V-Set is pre-DDA compliance so don’t expect much room to turn around and know that while you’re trying to do anything you’ll be blocking a bunch of other passengers from getting past you.

If I need to ride a V-Set with my bike I usually jump in the first or last door of the train and stay in the vestibule. People can squeeze past as they get on or off the train and there’s no access into the guards compartment so you don’t get through traffic.

Avoid taking your bike on a V-Set if possible and don’t even think about it with a cargo bike, touring bike or anything else oversize.

Endeavour Railcar

The Endeavours can be found on the South Coast Line (south of Kiama), the Hunter Line, the Southern Highlands Line and the Blue Mountains Line if you catch one of two daily Bathurst Bullets in each direction.

Endeavour railcar. Credit: Hugh Llewellyn

These trains lack any seating in the vestibule and have small doors, so they aren’t ideal for bikes. That said, they do have luggage and wheelchair areas that might double as bike parking, but I haven’t used them before so I can’t comment. Thankfully the volumes of passengers getting on and off trips run by endeavours should be very low so if you have to park your bike somewhere it partially blocks people and get up each time the train stops, it shouldn’t be a big deal.

Avoid an Endeavour if you can but don’t fret if you can’t.

Hunter Railcar

The Hunter railcars have been plying the Hunter line for almost 20 years and are basically a single deck diesel version of the millennium trains. They’ve got large doors and side seating in the vestibule. Taking your bike on one of these is basically the same as taking it on a suburban train.

Tick. Just like in Sydney!

OSCAR (also known as an H-Set)

The Outer Suburban Railcars were brought in for shorter distance intercity trips that experience high peak demand and needed larger capacity trains. They were originally designed to run to Wollongong and Wyong but can now be found running as far as Newcastle.

They’re from this century so expect wheelchair accessible toilets, automatic doors and side facing seating in the vestibule. Taking your bike on one of these is basically the same as taking it on a suburban train.

Tick. Just like in Sydney!

Mariyung (also known as a D-Set)

The much-delayed new intercity Mariyung trains take their name from the Dharug word for Emu. It’s a clever pun because not only are emus fast and graceful over long distances, but the 3-letter acronym EMU in railway parlance stands for Electric Multiple Unit, the type of train the Mariyung is.

Since December 2024 the Mariyungs are finally in operation. You can find them plying the route between Sydney and Newcastle and they should be rolled out to the Blue Mountains Line to replace the V-Sets in the coming year/s.

A V-Set and Mariyung (right) at Central Station. Credit: Dan Himbrechts

These trains are the crème of the crop, bringing intercity rail transport in NSW into the 2010s! Expect to find USB-A ports, 240V wall sockets and folding tray tables. Unlike on all the other trains listed here, you’ll actually be able to enjoy those features because the Mariyungs have legit bike racks! You can park your bike just like you’re at the shops, stow your luggage like you’re on a train to the airport (not in Sydney though lol) and sit down in a seat like a normal person.

The Mariyungs are made up of either 4 or 6 car sets which can be grouped together to create 4, 6, 8 or 10 car trains. My understanding is that each 4 or 6 car set will have one carriage with bike parking, so if your train is 8 or 10 cars long it should have two.

This handy side and plan view of the Mariyung ‘B’ type car shows then large exterior bike indicator and the location of the racks right by the doorway.

To spot the bike parking just walk (or ride) alongside the train until you see a larger-than-life size picture of a bike. Board through these doors, put your bike in the rack and you’re good to go.

Now this is living!

Regional NSW Trains

Okay that’s the relatively good news. If you’re heading further afield than the intercity rail network (i.e past Scone, Dungog, Bathurst or Goulburn) you’re going to need to mess with the NSW Trainlink checked luggage rules. These trains require seat reservations to travel on and your bike will need to be booked along as checked luggage. This generally isn’t free and can’t be done online; you’ll need to call up.

There are also draconian rules about how your bike must be packed that seem to be designed to discourage people from bothering to do so.

Be aware that NSW Trainlink staff take these rules seriously. I have seen a person be told off for attempting to take a folded-up Brompton style bike onto the train and place it in the luggage rack.

Yes, it fit in the luggage rack.

Yes, it was smaller and lighter than other luggage in the luggage rack.

No, they did not require assistance from staff, and

No, it did not unduly inconvenience other passengers.

However, the rules state that:

A limit of one (1) bicycle per passenger is permitted.
Reservations are essential.
Bicycles will be stored in the checked luggage area.

The bicycle (including protective containers) must weigh less than 20 kilograms to be accepted. If the bicycle exceeds 20 kilograms in weight, it cannot be accepted.

Push Bicycles:

Bicycles must be contained in a cardboard bicycle box or commercially produced protective bag to protect the bicycle during transport.
Bicycle boxes can be obtained from bicycle retailers or provided upon request.
When packing the bicycle, ensure that no part of it protrudes.
Boxes must not be torn or damaged to ensure the safe transportation of the bicycle.
Maximum dimensions when packed: 135cm long x 80cm high x 24cm wide.
A supplementary charge of $12.10 applies for push bicycles.

Folding Bicycles:

Folding bicycles must be packed in a commercially produced protective cover bag.
Maximum dimensions when folded: 79cm long x 59cm high x 36cm wide.
No additional charges apply for carrying folding bicycles.

The passenger in question didn’t have a commercially produced protective cover bag and hadn’t called up to make a special (free) reservation for their folding bike and so was in breach of the rules.

That said, NSW Trainlink have tacitly acknowledged the current system doesn’t work very well for cyclists. Stage 1 of a trial to allow ‘roll-on’ bikes on the XPT was completed in 2024 and Stage 2 is planned for 2025.

Hopefully in the near future there will be a more legible system, something like a bike rack in the luggage car would work fine, I’m sure.

The future of regional travel

The R-Sets are due to enter service from this year and we can only assume that they will have dedicated bicycle storage facilities for passengers. These trains are intended to replace the Xplorers, XPTs and Endeavour railcars over the coming couple of years.

The Regional Rail project website has a FAQ around bike racks which says:

The new regional intercity trains will have dedicated bike spaces.

The new long and short regional trains have been designed for bicycles to be stored in line with current NSW TrainLink procedures, but these methods will be reviewed before the new regional fleet is introduced. As part of this review process, concept testing is being carried out regarding the feasibility and viability of taking and storing bikes on-board without boxing.

Sounds promising, if not entirely certain. This should mean, in theory, that by 2028 you’ll be able to seamlessly take your bike on any passenger train service in NSW – tourist trains and land cruises notwithstanding, hooray! Bring on the rail trails!

Addendum: Most of the above has been put together from my own experience, if I’ve got anything wrong or you’ve got some better ideas on how to roll onto trains in NSW I’d love to hear about it!

Toll Relief Mania

By Jed C

On February 21, 2023

In Sydney Transport, Transport

In the lead up to next month’s state election Chris Minns and NSW Labor have been dropping transport policy ideas like they’re going out of fashion.

Much of it seems to be ill-thought-out populist dogma that is, at best, harmless: mobile phone chargers at busy train stations, or manufacturing more trains locally. The first is a cute irrelevance, while the second could be a boon for Newcastle but is really an employment and business policy, rather than a transport one.

Last week’s high-profile policy unveiling is anything but harmless.

If elected, NSW Labor has promised to introduce a $60 weekly cap per vehicle on toll roads in Sydney thus ending ‘Toll Mania’. Their argument is simple and easy to pitch in the short-attention-span world of social media: public transport fares are capped, so tolls should be too.

The logic is flawed and if this policy is introduced it will be bad news for the state. Let’s have a look at why.

Public transport is a social good, cars are not. We, collectively, want people to take public transport. Cars, usually carrying just one person, produce a negative externality to the city. They cause congestion, they pollute, they need to be parked somewhere all day and night and, once in awhile, they crash into a pedestrian or cyclist and kill them. We subsidise public transport because we can all get around faster, more healthily and safer when people use it. Just because we cap Opal fares does not mean we should cap tolls.
Induced demand. Cheaper tolls will encourage people to drive more. If you’re planning a trip for Saturday and you’ve reached your Opal cap, you know that you can take the train for free. Hooray! If Chris Minns’ policy becomes reality this logic will apply to toll roads. You could do laps on the M5/M7/M2/Eastern Distributor all weekend if you fancy. For free. Free for you, anyway.
There is no such thing as a free lunch when it comes to tolls. The NSW government collects all public transport fares in the state and uses them to (partially) pay for all public transport service. This applies even if the bus or train is run by a private operator. Tolls do not work like this. One company, Transurban, owns almost all the toll roads in NSW. Contracts have been signed stipulating toll prices. If the NSW government changes the pricing structure, they will have to pay the shortfall to Transurban. If a driver hits the $60 weekly cap the rest of their ‘free trips’ will be paid for directly by the taxpayers of NSW.
NSW stands for New South Wales, not Newcastle-Sydney-Wollongong. Minns’ is keen to point out that that the brunt of road tolls are worn by residents of Western Sydney. This is undoubtedly true. After all, our toll roads are in Sydney and the people that use them generally come from areas that lack high quality public transport or walkable mixed-use neighbourhoods. If this policy is enacted, residents from regional NSW, public transport users and anyone that does not regularly take toll roads will be directly subsidizing the road use of those that do. It’s a transfer from rural to urban, from public transport to motorists, from have-nots to haves.
This policy is regressive. It is targeted firmly at the middle. Labor have stated just 51,000 car owners will benefit from the policy. The rich don’t care about tolls, although they will benefit too. The poor are less likely to own a car and less likely to take toll roads often. This policy doesn’t reduce tolls in a way that benefits occasional users such as people from the country, public transport users and those that work locally. It will only benefit regular toll users that are clocking in more than $60 a week.

A photo of Chris Minns standing on a freeway overpass appearing to be in animated conversation. — Chris Minns is promising to end Toll Mania in Sydney by giving our state’s heaviest 50,000 users a free ride on the roads courtesy of the rest of the state. Photo credit: The St George Leader

A lot of people, I’m thinking about taxi and rideshare drivers, tradies and long-distance commuters, spend a lot more than $60 a week on tolls. These users will have their toll bill reduced dramatically and will take more trips on toll roads than they otherwise would. Why not? They’re free! All this extra money will go straight to Transurban shareholders, courtesy of the NSW taxpayer. This policy isn’t just populist, it is corporate welfare on a staggering scale.

The people of NSW deserve a government that can think critically about the rapidly changing world we live in and introduce infrastructure and policy to help us all survive and thrive. This policy demonstrates that NSW Labor are thinking only about residents of Sydney, do not take climate change or urban congestion seriously and are playing fast and loose with our collective wealth.

A toll cap will push more people onto motorways and off public transport. It will be expensive, diverting transport funding away from public transport projects and towards corporate profit. It is a regressive policy that demonstrates a profound ignorance of the complexity of our state’s transport system.

If you’re thinking of taking a punt on Labor to win the election next month you should put your money where your mouth is and buy a few Transurban shares, too.

Both Sides of the Political Divide

If you’ve spent any time in Sydney in the last 30 odd years it goes without saying that building new toll roads, alongside approving new fossil fuel projects ($), is about as close as we get to bipartisan policy in NSW. The M4, M2, M5, Eastern Distributor, Cross City Tunnel, Lane Cove Tunnel and the M7 all opened well before Westconnex got underway and it’s a he said/she said as to which major party is more responsible for the excess of toll roads in Sydney.

‘Toll relief’ projects go back almost as far and enjoy similar bipartisan support. The catch being that, with the exception of the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel tolls, any ‘toll relief’ scheme is a direct cash transfer to our privately owned tollway operators and the name ‘Transurban’ just keeps cropping up.

A screenshot of a web search for 'who owns sydney's toll roads'. There are a bunch of results and they prominently mention Transurban. — A quick search doesn’t leave much doubt as to who owns Sydney’s toll roads.

Bob Carr kicked off this habit all the way back in 1995 when he was elected on the promise of offering cashback for drivers on the M5 motorway; now part owned by the State Government and part owned by Transurban.

As toll roads spread like tentacles across Sydney a more holistic approach to toll relief was deemed necessary, one that didn’t quite so obviously porkbarrel a few swing seats in Southwestern Sydney.

In 2017 Gladys Berejiklian announced free car rego if you rack up a big enough annual toll bill. In 2019 the scheme was expanded to give discounted registration to moderate toll road users. Just last year the Perrottet government expanded the scheme even further and adopted the cashback model whereby drivers receive a portion of the tolls they pay back directly, in this case after exceeded a given threshold.

Not to be outdone by the Liberals, Minns’ is keen to make sure that the Labor party are offering the biggest boon to Transurban and incentivising car usage the most.

What’s most problematic about the latest iteration as put forward by NSW Labor is that it offers totally free toll road use beyond a threshold. Perrottet’s version only offers a partial discount on toll fees and spreads this benefit to a wider number of people, not just our state’s heaviest toll road users. The Labor version is more costly, less inclusive and less progressive.

Just one more toll road bro

What’s obvious through all of this is that the dream of ‘Build-Operate-Transfer’ was always too good to be true. We were promised massively discounted motorway construction where the brunt of the cost would be borne by the user and seamlessly managed by the private sector.

What we’ve ended up with is a classic late-stage-capitalism grift: the Government splits the construction bill with the private sector who sign lengthy operational contracts with over inflated toll rates and guaranteed quarterly increases, voters complain and so the taxpayer steps back in to foot the bill, only now instead of just paying for the construction of the thing we have to meet the terms of a contract designed to provide ongoing return to Transurban’s shareholders. One of whom, incidentally, is the now former Finance Minister. Although if you have a managed super fund, which is basically every person that has ever had a job, then you’re probably one too.

At this point the road out from the downward spiral is long and politically treacherous. It’s a safe bet that the two major parties will continue their one-upmanship when it comes to new toll roads and subsequent ‘toll relief’.

Come to think of it, whichever way you’re punting this election the safest bet is on Transurban.

A Fair Compromise for the Eastern Suburbs Bus Network

By Jed C

On November 9, 2021

In Sydney Transport, Transport

Back in May I wrote an analysis of TfNSW’s plan to completely makeover the Eastern Suburbs bus network. With the L2 and L3 light rail lines in full operation for over 12 months, it is well and truly overdue.

Prior to the launch of L2 in December 2019, the last big piece of public transport infrastructure to open was the Hills Metro line in May of that year. The accompanying bus network redesign was fairly underwhelming and so I wasn’t expecting much from TfNSW this time around.

I was pleasantly surprised!

The plan focused on doing more with what they had, with no announcement of any significant increase in rolling stock or labour hours. Instead, they seem to be rejigging allocations to operate more efficiently.

The existing bus network (until December 5^th) is based on the original tramlines that criss-crossed the Eastern Suburbs and much of Sydney until mid-century. From there, it’s been added to over the years to become the sprawling mess that it is today.

Does this map of the Eastern Suburbs' original tramways look familiar at all? Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eastern_trams.png#/media/File:Eastern_trams.png — Does this map of the Eastern Suburbs’ original tramways look familiar at all? Source: wikimedia.

That original tram network was designed to get people (men) from their homes in the suburbs to their workplaces in the Central Business District. The transport-speak for this design is called a ‘radial network’. It’s great if you want to go in and out, not so great if you want to go in-between or round-about.

The new network (from December 5^th) has been designed to foster the so-called ‘network effect’ of a large public transport system. In practice this means a smaller number of more frequent and more reliable routes connect with each other at key destinations like universities, shopping centres and train stations. This system links passengers to important local hubs from where they can change service to access a wide variety of destinations.

While the old network gave almost everyone in the Eastern Suburbs a frequent and reliable one seat ride to Central Station or Circular Quay, the new network opens new pathways connecting places that were not readily accessible by public transport.

A screenshot of a bus network map from December 2021, showing the area around Green Square and Redfern — The high-frequency network map around Green Square.

Take note of high frequency (10 minutes or better) services heading towards busy train stations that weren’t really an important part of the old network like Green Square, Redfern and (soon to be) Waterloo.

Every line on that map represents a bus, tram or train service that runs at least every 10 minutes all day. If we’d had a look at that same area just a couple of years ago the only lines present would have been the train lines. An aggregation of routes along Anzac Parade and Crown Street might have combined to provide a frequent service in some places, but there was no clarity or consistency.

This new network design allows anyone to quickly determine where and how they can readily access public transport.

The Changes

By and large, the network that will commence operation next month reflects the changes proposed back in May, but despite the recent turmoil the state government has been embroiled in, they have managed to make a few revisions.

Restoring the 373

The most significant alteration between the May and November announcements is the return of the 373. The Coogee to City bus was axed completely in the May redesign, leaving residents of the bourgeois beachside bubble forced to interchange in unsavoury Randwick outside of peak hours. Of course the reverse was also true, leaving Sydney’s troves of backpackers unable to get to the beach quite so seamlessly.

A Mark 5 Mercedes bus running as route 373 bound for Coogee Beach — An Eastern Suburbs icon.

Some residents groups, and local Labor MP Majorie O’Neill, have been particularly outspoken in the battle to save the one seat ride. Their campaign focuses on the number of bus routes being axed, rather than the number of services in operation. This seems like a miss to me, since the performance of a bus network surely shouldn’t be measured in the sheer number of bus routes it has. I suppose the simple narrative of a Coalition government axing bus routes is straightforward and easy to understand.

Thankfully, the backlash was responded to in a fairly sensible manner of compromise, returning the 373 as a high frequency service (every 10 minutes all day, every day) while generally sticking to the planned network design. Aside from restoring direct beach access from the CBD, this has the added benefit of resolving the shortage of buses operating along Flinders Street to Taylor Square, a problem I pointed out in May.

In that original iteration of the changes, only the 396 would have run from the South East to Taylor Square every 10 to 20 minutes. This represented a huge cut in service. With the 373 restored and the 396 also increased to high frequency, there will be a bus every 5 minutes down Oxford Street to Anzac Parade.

I also can’t really imagine a 370 every 10 minutes being anywhere near enough to meet beach travel demand on weekends in Summer. I think a high-frequency 373 is a good idea until the L2 is extended to Coogee Beach via the Havelock Street tram right-of-way as it should have been originally.

Of course this is a zero sum game and all those 373s are going to have to come from somewhere. A few cuts that jumped out at me were the removal of the 305 outside of peak hours, limiting access to the Alexandria industrial area and cutting the 350 at Domestic, meaning a change to the 420 to get to International.

Extending the 370 to Glebe Point

In May I pointed out that the 370 is the thorn in the side of good public transport in the Inner South. The addition of the 373 will reduce the pressure on the 370 at the Coogee Beach end and its extension down Glebe Point Road is a boon for hipsters neighbourhood hoping the Inner West. It’s also good news for Darlington, which was never a good choice for a bus layover.

I think TfNSW could’ve gone a lot further here. The Western half of what was the 370, between Leichardt and Glebe, now just ends on Glebe Point Road. It’s hard to see what value this bus route brings, when most of its route is duplicated by the very frequent 470 that runs to Broadway and Central as well.

The high-frequency network fades out fast once you get to Newtown and the more familiar tangle of bus routes resumes. It’s hard not to read this totally bizarre terminus for the ‘469’ (as it has been dubbed) as temporary.

I could see the 469 being extended East down Bridge Road through Pyrmont/Ultimo to the CBD and perhaps down William Street to terminate at Edgecliff, or even operating as the 373 to Coogee as another cross-town alternative. With the 370 running a high frequency connection to Broadway, the L1 and 433 connecting to Central and the improved 469 running over the Western Distributor to Town Hall, the slow and inefficient 431 would no longer be needed, freeing up lots of buses to be deployed elsewhere.

This whole part of the network redesign feels like a bit of a band-aid until the Inner West region is given the frequent-network treatment that is no doubt underway.

The 307: The Campbell Street Connection

A Map of the May 2021 plan to have the 307 connecting Mascot to Marrickville — Now you seem me…

In May I suggested that the 307 from Mascot to Marrickville Metro would quickly be canned/altered. TfNSW has opted for the latter. It’s a shame, because East/West connections have always been a weak point and this plan doesn’t go anywhere near far enough to improve them. There is potential here, but a dinky low frequency bus that kind of skirts the Inner West to terminate at Marrickville Metro wasn’t really ever going to take off.

A map of the November 2021 plan with the 307 no longer included. — …now you don’t!

Looking towards the next round of network improvements, I’d love to see a high frequency route connecting Sydenham-Mascot-Kingsford-UNSW along the Gardeners Road corridor and another running the length of Cleveland Street from Newtown to Moore Park.

One way to achieve this would be by moving the 370 to Erskineville Road as I suggested in May, combining the 352/355 to run Enmore Road-King Street-Cleveland Street-Cook Road-Oxford Street and diverting the 308 to serve Waterloo. As for the Gardeners Road corridor, there’s nothing wrong with the 358 except its frequency.

Swapping the 303 and 306

This change isn’t of much relevance outside of Mascot, but the 303 and 306 have switched over their routes around Eastlakes. This is good news for UNSW students living in the Brighton area who can get to uni without going down every back street in Eastlakes. I still think the 303 is a massively missed opportunity for a more frequent, more direct connection between Rockdale-Brighton-Mascot-UNSW.

Too many ways through Surry Hills

The last questionable choice I want to rehash is the decision to run the 339 and 374 down different corridors through Surry Hills. The 2 buses serve different parts of the Eastern Suburbs, but a lot of people in Randwick, Coogee or Clovelly live close to either route, so there’s some value having them call at the same stops around Surry Hills. Living near two 20-minute bus routes becomes much appealing if you can board them from the same stop.

With the 373 now running down Flinders, I just don’t see the need to have the 339 serving Albion/Foveaux. Better to move it to Cleveland Street and maintain a decent service through there.

There would still be at least 8 buses per hour in each direction on Elizabeth, Crown and Flinders Streets, so no one in the Albion/Foveaux area would be wanting for buses.

Maybe next time.

Onward and Upward

There’s a bunch of other changes that are either smaller or don’t directly relate to my interests. The good news is TfNSW published a fairly comprehensive community submission report that explains what the feedback said and what they’ve done to address it.

Ultimately, I think it’s a shame that the L2 wasn’t built all the way to Coogee along the existing Havelock Street right-of-way in the first place. If that had been done, the 373 really wouldn’t be necessary and the 396 could do the job of connecting Darlinghurst with the South East. This would free up a lot of rolling stock and labour that could be used to bolster the weaker East/West connections.

That said, it is great to see the state government produce a forward looking bus network redesign.

First the Northern Beaches and now the Eastern Suburbs, in years to come Sydney just might be a pleasure to traverse by bus, if not by light rail.