Peak hour train services between the Blue Mountains and Redfern are to return following customer feedback, Transport for NSW (TfNSW) has announced.
Following the release of the new timetable November 2017, Redfern was removed as a stop for Blue Mountains Line services, forcing passengers wishing to alight or embark at Redfern to change trains at Parramatta, Strathfield or Central.
Public displeasure at the change has been registered by the transport authority, NSW TrainLink acting chief executive Howard Collins said, and the stop has been returned to peak timetabled services in the morning and afternoon.
“We’ve always said we’re listening to customers and open to tweaking the new timetable and reintroducing the stop is a perfect example,” Collins said.
“We understand it’s more convenient for some Blue Mountains services to stop at Redfern, so we’ve made the change for a number of key services.”
The Redfern stop has been added to three morning and three afternoon services, with the change to be implemented “as soon as possible” following operational staff briefings, according to TfNSW.
Blue Mountains Labor MP Trish Doyle told the The Blue Mountains Gazette that Redfern was a “crucial stop for hundreds of passengers every day who needed to get to work or university and it should never have been removed in the first place”.
“It goes to show that people power can prevail against some of the sillier decisions made by this minister for transport,” she said.
Redfern will be an added stopped to the following services:
- The 5:44 am from Mt Victoria to Sydney
- The 6:14 am from Mt Victoria to Sydney
- The 6:45 am from Mt Victoria to Sydney
- The 4:33pm from Sydney to Katoomba
- The 5:03 pm from Sydney to Katoomba
- The 5:33pm from Sydney to Mt Victoria
TfNSW will reportedly be monitoring the safety and operational impact of adding Redfern stops to these Blue Mountains Line services.