OPENING of the first section of the 22km Parramatta light rail network in Sydney, Australia, has been delayed after a number of problems were identified during testing of the system.
Earlier this summer, Transport for New South Wales (NSW) said the $A 2.9bn ($US 2bn) line would be transporting passengers “within a few weeks”. However, in a statement to Australian media outlet ABC in late August, NSW transport minister, Ms Jo Haylen, admitted there were “kinks in the system” which needed to be ironed out before the 12km Stage 1 of the project, branded by Transport for NSW as L4 over the summer, could start taking passengers. Transport for NSW has not committed to an opening date.
“The testing process has identified some issues for the contractor and Transport for NSW to fix which is the whole point of the process,” Haylen says. “One of the lessons we learnt from the launch of the CBD and Eastern Suburbs Light Rail is that we do not want to be using passengers as guinea pigs. When we open, we want to deliver a service which runs to timetable and is reliable.”
Testing of Stage 1 started in mid-December 2023. Some of the issues behind the delay are understood to be related to software, problems with the Opal Card ticketing system and power supply issues.
The delay comes shortly after the new automated Metro City amd Southwest line in Sydney opened to passengers on August 19, two weeks after its scheduled launch date.
For detailed data on light rail projects across the globe, subscribe to IRJ Pro.
