New timetable is 'bad news' for commuters - Tesch

The new rail timetable is "bad news" for Woy Woy commuters, and more is still to come, according to Member for Gosford Ms Liesl Tesch.

No new services were added in the new timetable, but an extra stop - at Burwood - has been added to the trip.

This is before the North West Link will close the North Shore line to Central Coast trains, which is yet to be announced.

Ms Tesch said train commuters to Sydney would not see any new train services on the "bulging" Central Coast and Newcastle line.

"This is despite many services nearing 100 per cent capacity by the time they reach Woy Woy," Ms Tesch said.

"This is just more bad news from the Liberal Government that doesn't care about the Central Coast, and has left the regions commuters behind," she said.

"It seems no consideration was given to the Central Coast, and the increasing need for train services for our commuters.

"The Liberal Government has been working on this new timetable for close to five years, but obviously not long enough to make sure the Coast gets our fair share."

Ms Tesch said she had questioned the NSW Minister for Transport, Mr Andrew Constance, about the fact no new services were added, "even to the packed 5:08am service from Woy Woy".

Ms Tesch said that adding Burwood to the stopping pattern of Central Coast Line trains showed just how out of touch the Government was.

"Including Burwood shows that Central Coast commuters are not even the priority on our own rail line.

"While it may only be a couple of minutes extra per trip, the bigger problem is that the Government is willing to pack more passengers onto trains that are already full when they get to Burwood because the Inner West Line is also at capacity.

"The Liberal Government is shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic.

"Without proper attention and investment in additional trains and services, the whole system might just sink."

The unknown quantity in the new timetable discussion is when the North Shore Line will become a no-go zone for Central Coast commuters with the commencement of the North West Metro link, forcing local passengers to change at Hornsby for North Shore Line services, Ms Tesch said.

SOURCE:

Media release, 24 Oct 2017

Richard Mehrtens, Office of Liesl Tesch MP