Image: Photo: Wikimedia Commons
From the end of April, all T6 Lidcombe & Bankstown Line train services will not be running for two months — leaving Bankstown, Birrong and Yagoona without any trains at all.
Train services connecting Lidcombe to Bankstown via Regents Park will be suspended for 63 days from 27 April.
The T6 Lidcombe & Bankstown Line connects these western suburbs to the broader railway network through Lidcombe and Regents Park, a key link whilst the bulk of the Bankstown line undergoes conversion to metro.
In addition to the ongoing closure of the line from Sydenham to Bankstown, construction works associated with this conversion necessitate the temporary closure of the T6 line, meaning travellers in a swathe of Western Sydney will be reliant on fare-free replacement buses.
These construction works include signalling upgrades and platform extensions at Bankstown which will ultimately improve the capacity of the T6 line. The latter works will permit train lengths on the service to be doubled to eight carriages, in line with most suburban services.
Since the beginning of this year, about 15 to 20 thousand passengers have used the Lidcombe & Bankstown Line per week, making it the least patronised of all suburban lines. It sees more passengers than the intercity Southern Highlands and Hunter lines which rely on two-carriage single-decker trains.
The closure announcement follows the revelation in early March that the expected opening of the metro extension to Bankstown had been pushed back to 2026.
Minister says T6 Lidcombe & Bankstown Line closure will be worthwhile
Transport minister John Graham emphasised that the disruption will be proven worthwhile.
“Communities that use this line will experience disruption due to these necessary rail upgrades, however once complete, the line will be able to accommodate rail services with double the capacity while connecting to a world class new Southwest Metro service,” Graham said.
“This is a relatively small shuttle line by passenger numbers, but the loss of services for nine weeks will be disruptive for the passengers who use the T6 Line and we want to make sure commuters are aware and know what the alternatives are.”
“We will have fare-free rail-replacement buses in place and marshals on the ground to ensure all passengers can continue to get where they need to go.”
Replacement bus routes announced
Transport for NSW outlined the alternatives that will be available to travellers, including replacement buses and train services which will continue to operate, including the T3 Liverpool & Inner West Line through Lidcombe, Berala and Regents Park.
Passengers at Lidcombe will still be able to use that service as well as the T1 Western and T2 Leppington & Inner West lines to travel to the city centre, Inner West and elsewhere.
“There will be no change in service levels for these lines,” the agency said.
Two replacement bus routes were announced: the all-stations 8T6 route and the express 8AT6 shuttle between Bankstown and Lidcombe only.
“Passengers will be able to interchange to train services at Lidcombe and Regents Park, or interchange onto the pink Southwest Link buses at Bankstown,” Transport for NSW said.
“Communities and passengers along the line will be informed about the transport changes via comprehensive communications and engagement activities.”
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