[Forum]Once again, on February 10, we experienced a disrupted chaotic journey to the city from Woy Woy: People left queuing with buses coming every 30 minutes during peak hour on a Monday morning.
The queue started from the lift next to bus stand C and went well beyond the carpark along the train line opposite Deepwater Plaza.
Trains being suspended between Hornsby and Gosford in both directions meant that people were forced to squeeze into overcrowded rail buses.
This only exacerbated the overcrowding at Hornsby where only two platforms with services meant that every train was similar to sardines in a sardine can.
Elderly people were forced to stand and hold onto stair rails due to the overcrowding.
This could have potentially been a disaster with people pushing their way onto overcrowded trains and rail coaches.
This comes after yet another timetable change with no new services for the Newcastle and Central Coast line yet many more for Sydney’s Western and Northern lines.
It is not hard to see that the Central Coast are not in the Government’s mind. Out of the last two timetable changes, we have received one more service between Gosford and Newcastle and none for the Central Coast to Sydney. More and more frequently we are seeing disruptions on our train network and, 90 per cent of the time, it affects the Central Coast and Newcastle line: Everything from urgent signal repairs to freight trains requiring mechanical repairs.
All of these issues provide an unsatisfactory service for commuters and massive delays to people who have already spent a long hard day at work and just want to go home.
Instead, they are waiting for countless periods for services which are already at capacity.
The New South Wales Government and the Minister for Transport should consider the Central Coast and Newcastle in their next timetable update.
Central Coast residents are sick of sitting in packed carriages and sitting in stairwells, vestibules and toilets just to get on the train.
We need more train services.
Packed trains and rail buses are not the answer.
SOURCE
Email, 11 Feb 2020
Jackson Tumpey, Woy Woy