Source : Perth Now news
The first services for the fully completed Metro West line have commenced, with hundreds of commuters gathering to be a part of history as the first trains begin ferrying workers between Bankstown and the city.
The train doors opened on the platforms at Bankstown Train Station at 4.30am on Friday morning, with weary-eyed MPs, reporters, tradies, city workers and train enthusiasts all piling on board to get a first glimpse at Sydney’s newest piece of major public infrastructure.
Stations in Bankstown, Punchbowl, Wiley Park, Lakemba, Belmore, Campsie, Canterbury, Hurlstone Park, Dulwich Hill and Marrickville all opened simultaneously, granting passengers from throughout Sydney’s west quick and easy access to the CBD and Sydney’s northern suburbs.
Until Friday morning, passengers had been forced to spend more than an hour via train and bus networks to reach Central station from Bankstown.
That commute has been slashed in half, with standard journey lengths of about 28 minutes between the Bankstown and Central Metro stations.
The road to completion for the southwest Metro has not always been seamless, and in 2023 a review took place after the budget for the project – slated in 2016 to cost about $12 billion – suffered a significant blowout.
The current estimated cost for the Sydney Metro West project is about $25 billion.
More to come.
