Commuters can expect delays and a main Sydney train line’s conversion to a metro service will face “significant” disruption at the taxpayer’s expense unless the New South Wales government can reach an 11th-hour agreement with the rail union.
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union was yet to reach a breakthrough in emergency talks with Sydney and NSW Trains management on Thursday morning after beginning industrial action on Wednesday.
The RTBU and the government have been locked in a tussle over a new enterprise agreement for train drivers as well as the union’s concerns about the metro conversion of the T3 line between Sydenham and Bankstown in western Sydney.
Train staff have refused to work outside normal rosters, limiting network coverage for the NRL and AFL finals and Bledisloe Cup on Friday and Saturday.
The union is also threatening to shut down the entire T3 line if the government goes ahead with its plans to close the Sydenham to Bankstown segment from 30 September to begin converting it to a metro service.
That would leave the transport department scrambling to find enough replacement buses to accommodate passengers along the entire rail corridor instead of just between Bankstown and Sydenham.
The transport minister, Jo Haylen, said the disruption would be “significant” and cost taxpayers more than $100m a month.
“We have 200 bus drivers hired, 100 buses ready to go. Everything is in place,” she said.
The union has staunchly opposed the project, which will transform the line between Bankstown and Sydenham into one that can accommodate driverless trains. Unlike the recently opened Sydney Metro, the new T3 metro will be above ground.
The RTBU has previously called for the metro conversion of the T3 line to be abandoned altogether.
The RTBU NSW secretary, Toby Warnes, on Wednesday insisted the union’s opposition to the project was because of safety concerns and not because it would mean fewer train drivers.
“The Bankstown line is out in the open, it runs on a level corridor, it runs next to a freight train,” he said.
“We’re not opposed to the metro, per se. On the Tallawong to Sydenham [metro line] you still have staff – just not drivers – and they’re all our members as well.”
Haylen on Thursday said the government had already spent $2.5bn on the southwest metro project. She insisted the T3 conversion would result in a safe track.
The union also wants to use new multi-employer bargaining provisions introduced by the Albanese government in 2022, which would enable train drivers to bargain alongside Sydney light rail employees when they enter pay negotiations later this year.
As of this week, the RTBU was planning to push for an 8% annual pay increase for every year of the agreement it ended up reaching with the Minns government.
The union said it would call off this week’s industrial action if the government agreed to offer 50c fares to public transport users, in line with a similar policy that began in Queensland last month.
The opposition transport spokesperson, Natalie Ward, accused Labor and the RTBU of being “entwined every step of the way”.
She refused to say whether she supported the idea of 50c fares, saying that “fare pricing is a matter for the government”.
The premier, Chris Minns, said fares could not be made that cheap without it costing the taxpayer.
Transport for NSW has apologised to commuters and warned the action could cause train services to be cancelled at short notice. It said it would update passengers as soon as possible on its plan for the weekend.
Will you be affected by the shutdown of Sydney’s T3 train line? If so contact mostafa.rachwani@theguardian.com
