Light rail in Sydney

Light rail in Sydney

Variotrams at the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre
Overview
Locale	Sydney
Transit type	Light rail
Number of lines	1
Number of stations	23
Annual ridership	3.9 million in 2013-14[1]
Website	www.transdevsydney.com.au
Operation
Began operation	31 August 1997
Operator(s)	Transdev Sydney
Technical
System length	12.8 km (8 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	750V (DC) overhead line
Dulwich Hill Line, in blue

Light rail is one of the four major public transport modes serving the city of Sydney, Australia, the others being train, bus and ferry. The network presently consists of a single 12.8-kilometre (8 mi) line of 23 stations.^[2][3] Early works have commenced on a second line.

History

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Sydney developed an extensive tram network, which grew to be one of the largest in the world. The increasing rate of private car ownership and the perception that trams contributed to traffic congestion led to the progressive replacement of tram services with buses, with the final section of the tram network closing in February 1961.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the inner city areas of Darling Harbour and Pyrmont were the subject of an urban renewal program. In 1988 the Sydney Monorail opened, connecting Darling Harbour to the Central Business District. With poor integration between the monorail and other transport modes, and the increasing redevelopment of the Pyrmont peninsula - including the establishment of Sydney's first legal casino - it was decided to convert a disused section of the Metropolitan Goods railway line into a light rail line. A section of track between Pyrmont and Haymarket was upgraded and a new on-street section constructed to link the line to Central railway station. The line opened in August 1997 as the Sydney Light Rail.

The line was set up as a public-private partnership, with the Sydney Light Rail Company awarded a 30.5 year concession, allowing it to operate the line until February 2028, when ownership would pass to the Government of New South Wales.^[4] The contract gave the company significant control over the commercial arrangements relating to future extensions or interconnecting lines.^[5] In August 1998, the owners of the light rail purchased the Sydney Monorail.^[6] The company owning the light rail and monorail became known as Metro Transport Sydney and the systems were renamed Metro Light Rail and Metro Monorail.

The Government of New South Wales purchased Metro Transport Sydney on 23 March 2012 for $19.8 million, and the company was placed under the control of Transport for NSW.^[7] The purchase removed the contractual restrictions on expanding the light rail network and allowed the government to dismantle the monorail, assisting their plans to redevelop the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre.^[8][9] The monorail closed on 30 June 2013.^[10] From 1 July, the Metro Light Rail brand was phased out as part of part of a broader rebranding and reorganisation of public transport services in NSW.^[11] The process of shutting down Metro Transport Sydney and transferring assets to Transport for NSW was completed in September 2014.^[12]

Operation of the service has been contracted to Transdev Sydney and its predecessors since August 1998.^[13][6] In December 2014, the contract to construct and operate the CBD and South East Light Rail was awarded to the ALTRAC Light Rail consortium, consisting of Alstom, Transdev, Acciona Infrastructure & Capella Capital. The contract also covers operation and maintenance of the Dulwich Hill Line. The operating contract commences in mid 2015 and runs until 2034.^[14][15] Prior to August 1998, the system was operated by TNT.^[6]

Network

L1 Dulwich Hill Line

The Dulwich Hill Line is the network's original line. It connects the Inner Western suburbs with the Pyrmont peninsula, Darling Harbour and the southern end of the Central Business District. The line operates along a former freight railway, with a short on-street section at the city end. The route opened between Central and Wentworth Park in August 1997.^[16] The line was extended west from Wentworth Park to Lilyfield in August 2000 and then south-west from Lilyfield to Dulwich Hill in March 2014.^[17][18]

Planned extensions

CBD and South East line

The CBD and South East line is a future line, announced in 2012. It will operate from Circular Quay at the northern end of the Central Business District to Central station at the southern end, then continuing to the south-eastern suburbs. The line is being built to reduce bus congestion in the CBD and provide higher capacity public transport to the Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney Cricket Ground, Randwick Racecourse and the University of New South Wales, which are currently served only by buses. In contrast to the Dulwich Hill Line, the route is mostly on-street and follows a similar path to routes used by the former tramway network. Major construction is due to begin after Anzac Day 2015.^[19] The line is projected to open in early 2019.^[14]

Extension proposals

Several transport corridors have significant potential to allow for the growth of the network beyond its current route structure.

In December 2012, the State Government released a policy document entitled Sydney's Light Rail Future. The document identified the following priority corridors for investigation by Transport for NSW:^[20]

• Parramatta Road
• Victoria Road
• Anzac Parade between Kingsford and Maroubra or Malabar
• Western Sydney light rail network

Western Sydney Network

In 2013, Parramatta City Council published a feasibility study into a proposed Western Sydney Light Rail Network, designed to improve transport links throughout Western Sydney and meet the challenges posed by the projected rise in population in the region in the coming decades. The $1 million study found that a light rail system was a viable solution to address the growing transport needs of Parramatta and Western Sydney. The report proposes that an estimated $20 million in state and federal support is required to undertake a detailed investigation and to prepare a business case.^[21] It proposed that construction of the network would take place in several stages, the first of which comprises a route from Macquarie Centre to Castle Hill via Eastwood, Dundas, Parramatta and Baulkham Hills, with a branch from Parramatta to Westmead. Further extensions would operate from Parramatta to Bankstown and Rhodes.^[21]

As part of the 2014/15 NSW Budget, the State Government announced Transport for NSW would investigate ten potential light rail routes in Western Sydney. The government allocated $400 million to ensure funds for detailed planning and construction of an initial project would be 'ready to go', should the initial studies prove favourable. In October 2014, the list of routes was narrowed to four:^[22][23][24]

• Parramatta to Macquarie Park via Carlingford
• Parramatta to Castle Hill via Old Northern Road
• Parramatta to Bankstown
• Parramatta to Strathfield/Burwood via Sydney Olympic Park

The six routes eliminated from contention in October were:

• Parramatta to Liverpool via the T-way
• Parramatta to Rouse Hill
• Parramatta to Ryde via Victoria Road
• Parramatta to Sydney CBD via Parramatta Road
• Parramatta to Macquarie Park via Eastwood (as proposed by Parramatta Council)
• Parramatta to Castle Hill via Windsor Road (as proposed by Parramatta Council)

Anzac Parade

Transport for NSW is investigating an extension of the CBD and South East line along the southern Anzac Parade corridor. Three potential options are being examined; a 1.9 kilometre extension to Maroubra Junction, a 5.1 kilometre extension to Malabar and a 8.2 kilometre extension to La Perouse.^[25]

Bondi

The Waverley Municipal Council advocates the extension of the light rail network to link the current infrastructure to Bondi Junction and Bondi Beach.^[26][27][28] The council has commissioned AECOM to undertake a feasibility assessment of the reintroduction of light rail on the corridor between Bondi Beach and Bondi Junction (Stage 1) and onto the CBD (Stage 2) to achieve mass transit of passengers and has formally requested Transport for NSW consider the CBD to Bondi Beach corridor as a priority route in the Sydney Light Rail Plan.^[29] The assessment, published in 2013, recommended the construction of the light rail along a 3.9 km route from Bondi Junction to Bondi Beach along Bondi Road. It investigated three potential connections to the existing light rail network, via Randwick, via Moore Park Road and via Oxford street but recommended that a more detailed feasibility assessment was necessary to select the route.^[30]

Green Square

The City of Sydney Council has recommended that a Light Rail link be built from the city to Green Square, to service the commercial and residential developments currently being constructed in the area.^[31]

Tram fleet

There are two classes of trams in the fleet. All trams are articulated, low floor and bi-directional. The system uses standard gauge track and 750 volt direct current electrification.

Variotram

The network's original rolling stock is the Variotram which was introduced with the opening of the system in 1997. Seven German-designed vehicles were manufactured in Dandenong, Victoria by Adtranz.^[32] The Variotram design is modular and has been extended for the Sydney system. The capacity of the vehicles is 217 passengers, of which 74 are seated.^[33] On tests up to three trams have been coupled together allowing a maximum capacity of 600 passengers if required.^[32] They are numbered 2101-2107, continuing the Sydney trams sequence that finished at 2087 with the last Sydney R1-Class Tram.

The vehicles have a floor to rail height of 30 centimetres and the bogies have no axles between the wheels and are powered with hub motors.^[32] The design weight was reduced to compensate for the addition of climate-control air-conditioning equipment. Each tram is fitted with three double doors each side which have enhanced safety systems with obstacle detection interlocked with the traction system.^[32] Seats are generally in the transverse configuration - at 90 degrees to the sides of the vehicle. In 2014, the original external destination rolls were replaced with dot-matrix displays and digital voice announcements were installed. There are no internal displays.

Urbos 3

To service the Dulwich Hill extension and increase service frequencies, six Urbos 3 trams were ordered from Spanish company Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles (CAF), which was awarded the tender on 16 August 2012.^[34][35] The first tram (2112) arrived in Sydney on 19 December 2013.^[36] The first three tram vehicles (2112 to 2114) entered service over a three day period from 24 July to 26 July 2014.^[37]

On 11 October 2013, the Government announced an order for six additional trams to replace the Variotrams.^[38] All trams from the additional order are expected to enter service by the end of June 2015.^[39]

The trams are approximately 33 metres long and feature two double and two single doors on each side. Seats are generally in the transverse configuration - at 90 degrees to the sides of the vehicle.^[40] Digital voice announcements and internal dot-matrix displays provide information about the next stop.

Future trams

Citadis X05

As part of the winning consortium to build and operate the CBD and South East line, Alstom will supply thirty coupled pairs of Citadis X05 trams to provide the services.^[41] The trams were originally intended to be approximately 45 metres long and use batteries to offer wire free operation in a section of George Street between Bathurst Street and Circular Quay.^[42][43] In December 2014, it was announced that the trams would be lengthened to approximately 67 metres and that Alstom's proprietary Aesthetic Power Solution ground-level power supply technology would be used in place of batteries.^[44]

Withdrawn trams

Urbos 2

As part of the contract to provide six new Urbos 3 trams, an agreement was reached to lease four Urbos 2 trams. The additional trams would supplement the Variotrams and ensure service frequencies could be maintained after the extension to Dulwich Hill opened. The four leased trams had previously operated in Spain. Three units (2108-2110) were from Vélez-Málaga, where they operated between 2006 and 2012.^[45] The other tram (2111) was from Seville. The first tram arrived in Sydney on 4 September 2013.^[46] Delivery was completed in November. The trams entered service on 22 March 2014, five days before the opening of the extension to Dulwich Hill.^[47] Following the introduction of the Urbos 3 trams in July, the Urbos 2s were withdrawn and returned to Spain.^[37] The Urbos 2s were unpopular with passengers and attracted complaints.^[48]

The trams featured four double and two single doors on each side. The seats were unpadded and were generally built in the longitudinal seating configuration - running parallel to the sides of the tram body. Digital voice announcements and internal dot-matrix displays provided information about the next stop.

Ticketing

When it first opened, the light rail network used its own ticketing system. The network operated on a proof-of-payment system, with ticket vending machines provided at all stops. By the time the Lilyfield extension opened, the machines had been switched off and replaced with conductors on the trams. The light rail's ticketing system has gradually been merging with the broader Sydney ticketing system. The network currently has two separate ticketing systems, a traditional paper-based system and a smartcard-based system. The paper-based system will eventually be phased out, achieving full ticketing integration with other public transport services in Sydney.

Paper-based tickets

Single and return tickets are available with fares based on two zones. Flat fare day and weekly tickets are also available, some of which also included travel on the monorail prior to that system's closure.

Several tickets are recognised on the light rail but are not sold on trams. A "TramLink" ticket which allows travel on Sydney Trains and the light rail is available from Sydney Trains stations.^[49] From 27 June 2011, all MyMultis, the Pensioner Excursion Ticket and Family Funday Sunday have also been recognised.^[50] This improved integration with the broader Sydney ticketing system led to a 30% to 40% increase in patronage on the line in the first months after introduction.^[51]

Smartcard

From 1 December 2014, the Opal card has been accepted for travel on the light rail network. Light rail fares are the same as bus fares. Once the CBD and South East Light Rail opens, all light rail passengers interchanging with buses will only pay one fare, calculated from the start of their trip on one mode to the end of their trip on the other.^[52][53] The Opal validators are located at stops, contrasting with the system for paper tickets, which must be purchased or presented on the trams. Patronage increased in the months following the introduction of Opal on light rail services.^[39]

See also

• List of tram and light-rail transit systems
• Newcastle Light Rail
• Public transport in Sydney

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Light rail in Sydney.

• Official Site
• Transdev Sydney Official Site
• Information about the extensions
• Ticketing information

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