Get ready for delays when the Chatswood to Epping Train Line closes on 30 September 2018. This week the Minister for Transport Andrew Constance announced that trains will stop running between Chatswood to Epping as part of the State Government’s $20 billion metro railway project.
On 1 October buses will replace trains. The government announced that the trains will be replaced with 110 bus services running every hour during peak times to accommodate commuters. There will be seven replacement bus routes including Epping to Chatswood, Epping to Chatswood via the M2 Motorway, Beecroft to St Leonards and St Leonards to Macquarie University.
The Government has estimated that the new buses will add an extra 10 minute travel time to their journey. This is where the problem may impact Lane Cove. If you lived in Epping or Macquarie Park would you want to add an extra 10 minutes to your travel time? Why not jump on the 288, 292 or 294 and go straight to the city?
Route 292
The introduction of Route 292 easied some of the issues for Lane Cove North bus commuters. In October last year, this new route was announced as an all-day service to and from Lane Cove Interchange, the City and Macquarie Park seven days a week. More than likely this service will now be packed before it hits Lane Cove North. You can view the timetable here.
Route 294
Last year more services were introduced with the 294 originating at Epping and Mowbray Road and not at Macquarie Park. Transport NSW should be planning for a flow on impact and should be scheduling more 294 buses to leave from Lane Cove. You can view the timetable here.
Route 288
This route starts in Epping. Again more buses should be scheduled to start at Lane Cove and not at Epping.
Lane Cove Council
Over the last two years, ITC followers have assisted ITC to bring Lane Cove’s public transport issues to the attention of Lane Cove Council and our local member the Hon Anthony Roberts. On several occasions Anthony Roberts met ITC at the Lane Cove Interchange and saw first hand the issues. Mr Roberts even arranged for ITC to have a meeting at Parliament House with the Minister for Transport’s staff. This did result in more buses and also Lane Cove Council acknowledging that they had a role to play in public transport.
Lane Cove Council has been monitoring the waiting times at the Lane Cove Interchange. The Lane Cove Council commissioned Matrix Traffic and Transport Data to undertake a comprehensive on-site weekday patronage survey for a two week morning period from 26 February 2018 to 9 March 2018 to determine whether the passenger wait times have reduced.
Their figures show the additional bus services in the peak hour have substantially reduced the maximum passenger wait time from 18 minutes in 2017 to 9.5 minutes in 2018. The data shows that the maximum wait time has reduced almost by half. The maximum average passenger wait time has reduced from six minutes in 2017 to four minutes in 2018 and the minimum wait times have also reduced.
It is true that waiting times at the interchange have fallen, but in the last month ITC has seen the lines beginning to lengthen. See the photos below and our cover photo.
Studies were only conducted at the Lane Cove Interchange. The 253 (Riverview) bus is always full and passengers hoping to catch the 253 along Longueville Road are forced to go to the interchange as the bus fills up in Riverview.
The Lane Cove Council is discussing bus waiting times at their next meeting on Monday 16th April. The following has been proposed:
Council write to the State Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, The Hon. Andrew Constance MP and the Local Member, Hon. Anthony Roberts MP, thanking them for the additional bus services during the morning peak that service the Lane Cove Bus Interchange and providing the results of Council’s study indicating a reduction in bus waiting times.
ITC suggests that this letter of thanks should be accompanied by a request that Mr Roberts ensure his Lane Cove constituents are not impacted by the Epping to Chatswood train closure.
ITC has written to the Lane Cove Council, the Hon Anthony Roberts and Transport NSW seeking an assurance that waiting times will not be impacted. ITC suggests that ITC followers should also write to the Minister for Transport expressing their concerns about the flow on impact of the rail line closure. You can contact him here.
Please continue to update ITC with any issues as we are keeping a record of them.
Do you have a local issue you would like help with? ITC is here to help just email us at [email protected]
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