Sydney Train Disruptions Averted, NSW Rail Union Pauses Industrial Action

Train disruptions on one of the busiest weekends of the year have been averted, with the NSW government and the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) reaching a last-minute deal.

Minister for Transport Jo Haylen announced on Friday evening that following successful talks, the RTBU has agreed to lift a series of work bans, ensuring train services for Saturday and Sunday’s special events will not be disrupted.

The RTBU confirmed it had paused some of its industrial actions. “A huge win this afternoon for our members with a spectacular breakthrough with the minister,” the RTBU posted on Facebook. “Although a huge achievement, we are not done yet! While some actions are now suspended, we have more claims to work through and are hopeful for our next few rounds of intensive bargaining.”

Government Reaches Deal With NSW Rail Union

The union commenced industrial action earlier this week to press their demands and had threatened to disrupt services this weekend after talks with the government broke down.

With three major sporting events scheduled over the weekend – a Sydney Swans game on Friday, the Bledisloe Cup on Saturday, and the NRL semi-finals – disruptions to the network were expected to inconvenience fans heading to Sydney Olympic Park and Moore Park. The government had announced free train travel to mitigate potential disruptions.

The “breakthrough” came on Friday following talks with the Minister. “We have had very productive conversations, and I am pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement that enables both the Unions and Government to move ahead,” Haylen said in a statement.

Haylen confirmed that the Metro conversion of the T3 line from Sydenham to Bankstown will proceed. The government had previously stated that delays to this conversion would cost taxpayers around $100 million per month.

‘Driverless Metro’ Plans Shelved?

The government appears to have climbed down from its plans for a driverless Metro on the new Southwest Metro.

“We recognise the questions the union has about the future operation of the Southwest Metro,” the Minister said. “Following today’s discussions, we have agreed to additional staffing on the Southwest Metro. Just like the current operation of the City Metro section, Southwest Metro will have a Metro Trains Sydney staff member present on every train and every platform once operational.”

The RTBU had lashed out at the Metro conversion and had termed the driverless Metro as “a distracting shiny new toy”.

The RTBU stated that as per the agreement, the new South-West metro would have staff “on every platform monitoring the platform-train interface as well as a member on every train who is qualified and competent to drive the train.”

The government has also agreed to “commence an intensive period of bargaining, to accelerate the work on a new Enterprise Agreement for Sydney Trains and NSW Trains”. The Minister added that she will meet with the rail unions to “progress all matters.”

While the RTBU has paused industrial actions to allow for talks, they issued a warning: “The government should be under no illusion that should bargaining not prove fruitful, industrial action will once again escalate and hold them to account.”