Sydney Harbour Bridge Concrete Works-Rail Repair Plan goes ahead
Sunday, 3 December 2023
The Sydney Trains Rail Repair Plan is reaching great heights, as the project hits the halfway mark ahead of schedule with trackwork on the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
The $97 million program, announced by the Transport Minister in June to improve the reliability and resilience of the network, has now seen 80 per cent of the 1,900 high-priority defects fixed.
For the 1.4 million people who cross the Harbour Bridge by train every week, the rail line is on track to be more resilient than ever before.
This weekend, Rail Repair trackwork on this line has culminated in the installation of a new back-up airline hose across the bridge for the first time in history, meaning trains can keep running while critical signalling repairs are made.
This work over the harbour comes as train testing on the Sydney Metro City and Southwest line ramps up deep below, as well as trackwork this weekend, to provide a world-class rail service for our city from 2024.
At the six-month mark, the Rail Repair Plan has seen:
- 1,536 of 1,900 high-priority defects removed (yearly average from regular trackwork is 600)
- 800 kilometres of track repairs, including grinding and resurfacing
- 166 electrical backlog inspections completed (surpassing the initial target of 144)
- 88 speed restrictions removed (repairing the issues that require trains to slow down, like go- slow signs for roadworks)
- 489 trainstop rams refurbished (vital fail-safe emergency braking systems)
While the Sydney Trains network is 150 years old in parts and will never be free from incidents, Sydney Trains’ on-time running data has improved, especially over the past three months.
