Region. Fast train slows other trains

Expert analysis has found the proposed Western Express, a fast train service between Western Sydney and the CBD, could cause havoc with interstate and country trains, according to The Sydney Morning Herald. Rail industry experts said the plan to run up to 24 services an hour during the peak periods on the main western line could crowd out CountryLink services, including XPT and Explorer trains, which serve regional NSW, Brisbane and Melbourne. These trains could be stranded outside stations on the edge of the metropolitan area because there would not be enough room for them on the network during peak hour. The Daily Telegraph reports that RailCorp is preparing for a $1 billion order of up to 460 hi-tech trains for the project.

Region. Progress on Western Express

Tenders have closed for expert engineering and design consultants to plan the delivery of Western Express, between Penrith and the Sydney CBD, and the 5.4-kilometre City Relief Line, underground between Redfern and Wynyard and Transport NSW expects to release the Preliminary Environmental Assessment into the project in mid 2011. Transport NSW has called tenders for detailed geotechnical and survey work for the Western Express. Tenders will close in mid December and the works will commence in late January, 2011.

Region. Western Express possible pipe dream

The $4.5 billion Western Express project will remain nothing more than a pipe dream if, as expected, Labor loses the March 2011 election, according to The Daily Telegraph. The Opposition has refused to support the extra rail lines aimed at bringing commuters from Western Sydney into the city on longer, faster trains The Daily Telegraph revealed that the Western Express also includes a provision to build a tunnel under Sydney Harbour from Wynyard to St Leonards. More Western Express tender documents were released yesterday, revealing seven more studies into the project were under way.

Region. More power for Western Express

The $870 million being spent on a network upgrade for the new $4.5 billion Western Express project, between Western Sydney and Wynyard, is unlikely to be enough to power them, according to The Daily Telegraph. Premier Kristine Keneally announced earlier this year the project would use dedicated lines to fast-track commuters from the west on 10 or 12-car trains. New substations and more than 60 kilometres of overhead wiring are planned to stop the network collapsing if too many trains are in use at the same time. Other works include platform extensions at Emu Plains, Penrith, Kingswood, Werrington, St Marys, Mount Druitt and Blacktown stations; stabling extensions at Emu Plains and Flemington; and track revamps at Homebush, Strathfield and St Marys.