<span class="" id="parent-fieldname-description"> More people caught a train on the Sydney metro network in 2013/14 than in the previous financial year, but on average trains were less busy, according to Transport for NSW. </span> <p>End of financial year statistics reveal that patronage increased by eight million journeys on the Sydney Trains network in 2013/14.<br /><br />Average crowding levels in the busiest hour in the morning and afternoon have decreased by about 6% year-on-year, however.<br /><br />Trains were at 111% capacity according to the load data statistics between 8am and 9am on the Sydney Trains network – down from 117% in the 2012/13 financial year.<br /><br />One of the biggest improvements in recent years has been on the Western Line, where crowding has eased 10% since 2011, despite several million more journeys being taken.<br /><br />“Patronage has increased on the suburban network to 314 million journeys a year – that’s a jump of almost eight million journeys in one year alone,” state minister for transport Gladys Berejiklian said.<br /><br />“The biggest increase in patronage was on the Airport Line where we introduced 15 extra weekly peak services. The Inner West Line also experienced a big jump in patronage, now running to a simpler and more reliable 15 minute frequency.<br /><br />“The NSW Government is rolling out major improvements to public transport, including extra services, Opal electronic ticketing, station upgrades, thousands of additional parking spots and reforms to improve customer service at stations.<br /><br />“It is great to see this investment translate into thousands more customers choosing to leave the car at home and rely on our train network to get where they need to go.”<br /><br />In the peak evening hour, between 5pm and 6pm, crowding decreased year-on-year from 98% to 91%.<br /><br />A train that has a 100% loading result means all customers have a seat. Like other rail networks around the world, it is normal for a percentage of customers to be standing in the peak by the time they get close to the CBD, Transport for NSW said.<br /><br />“One of the major goals of the new timetable was improving travel time and comfort for intercity customers travelling longer distances, and I am pleased to see patronage is increasing on these services while customers travelling further are still getting a seat,” Berejiklian explained.<br /><br />“This means we are moving more people but with far less crowding, resulting in a better experience for our customers. I am pleased that even with all these extra services and customers, Sydney Trains continues to exceed reliability targets.<br /><br />“We’ve worked hard to improve services for train customers and people are clearly voting with their feet and opting to take the train.”</p>
