NSW Government Revamps “Forgotten” Sydney Buses With 3,000 Additional Weekly Services

From mid-November, the NSW Government will introduce 3,000 additional weekly bus services, meaning more frequent buses, new connections, and later services across Sydney and greater NSW.

The news comes less than two weeks after the NSW Government introduced 190 new bus services for the 413 and 418 routes, to complement the South-West Metro which opening on Friday 30 October.

New 24-Hour Bus Routes

The service boost, commencing on 15 and 22 November, will include changes to the 343 between Kingsford and Circular Quay and the 370 between Coogee and Glebe Point, allowing both to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Otherwise, the 418 between Sydenham and Burwood will also operate around the clock on Friday and Saturday nights, giving more people access to public transport after dark. These changes bring the total number of 24-hour bus routes to 40, including 29 operating seven days a week and 11 operating overnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

New Inner West Bus Routes

As for Inner West frequenters, commuters to the area can expect a new route 444 between Leichhardt and Balmain East Wharf, improving connections to F4 ferry services. 

The changes also include new overnight Friday and Saturday services on route 418 between Burwood and Sydenham, and an additional 160 weekly trips on route 370, supporting demand from university students and other passengers, with services operating 24/7.

Inner West residents can also look forward to additional train and metro connection options, with more off-peak trips and extended operating hours on route 413 between Campsie and Central, and route and timetable changes to the 450, 923, 939, 940, 941, 944, 945, and 946 to improve connections with the Southwest Metro. 

New Eastern Suburbs Bus Routes

Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs bus network is also receiving a revamp under the changes, including the restoration of a direct connection between Bronte and the Sydney CBD through route 378, combining the existing route 389 with the Bronte section of route 379.

Clovelly will also benefit from better connectivity to the CBD, with an additional 54 weekly trips operating on the 339X Clovelly to City Museum express service, with extended morning and afternoon operating hours.

Other changes include an additional 113 weekly services on route 343, which will now operate 24/7, an extension of route 373 to Circular Quay via Elizabeth Street, and other service adjustments to respond to changing demand and improve reliability, including the use of more articulated buses.

Changes To Sydney Buses Follow “Extensive Community Consultation”

“We’re delivering 3,000 more bus services every week, giving people more options to get to work, school, university and home,” said Minister for Transport, John Graham. “That includes more frequent buses in growing communities, better connections to other public transport and more services running through the night.

“Buses were left behind under the former Liberal Government. We’re turning that around, with 9,000 additional weekly services delivered since coming to government. These improvements have been informed by extensive community consultation, and we’ll continue listening to passengers as we work to deliver a better, more reliable bus network.”

Parliamentary Secretary for Transport and Member for Coogee Marjorie O’Neill similarly lauded the changes, arguing that under the Liberal Government buses had become Sydney’s “forgotten mode” of public transport.

“This huge uplift in local bus services is welcome news for our community and across Sydney after years of cuts and privatisation under the former Liberal Government,” O’Neill said. 

“New 24/7 services on the 343 and 370 routes, alongside more frequent services across the Eastern Suburbs, and the restoration of the 373 to Circular Quay and the 378 between Bronte and the City will make it easier for people to get where they need to go, day or night.”