And we've got the final count for day 1
By Matt O'Sullivan
About 140,000 people took a trip on Sydney’s first driverless metro line on the opening day.
We bumped into the state’s secretary for Transport, Rodd Staples, at Chatswood station who told us yesterday was "an exceptional day" in terms of the sheer volume of train spotters who turned up for a ride.
Mr Staples, who was the architect of Sydney’s plans for metro lines, said the rail system was coping well on the first weekday in operation.
"There’s a healthy number of people using the system on the first day," he said.
Premier sorry for first-day 'glitch'
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian apologised for the "small glitch" on opening day where a train got stuck when its doors didn't line up with the platform; but she said on the whole, things went really well.
"I hope today will be glitch free," she told Nine's Today Show on Monday.
"But you'd expect in the first few weeks and even months that it won't be perfect. We are asking people to be patient and I want to thank everybody for their patience."
When the newly-opened line reaches full operation, trains will run every four minutes each way during peak hour between Rouse Hill and Chatswood.
But for the first six weeks, they will first run every five minutes at peak times.
Ms Berejiklian said it would take a few months before people started using the network, as they work out how it fits in their daily routine.
More than 20,000 people worked on the $7.3 billion project over eight years. Work is now underway to extend the line from Chatswood to Bankstown.
Later, another metro project will link greater Parramatta with the CBD.
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Epping and Chatswood feeling the squeeze
By Matt O'Sullivan and Josh Dye
We're seeing some crowded platforms as trains pull in at two key stations, Epping and Chatswood.
Crowded platform at Epping around 8am. Credit:Peter Rae
But while the platforms are filling up with patrons, they are clearing out again once the trains stop and pick them up.
At 8am at Chatswood, things were moving smoothly despite the higher volume of commuters from the metro services. There are a large number of station staff on the platforms during the morning peak.
"Please spread along the platform," station staff tell commuters on platform one.
That’s the platform at which Sydney Trains services on the North Shore line pick up commuters who switch from metro trains.
The next hour will be the real challenge.
Trains already packed, but 'better than getting stuck in traffic'
By Josh Dye
Trains approaching Epping are already packed and commuters are not impressed with the frequency of trains so far, which are running every 10 minutes.
Esther Kim commutes from Castle Hill to QVB, and usually gets the bus. She said she is looking forward to a "quicker and faster" trip.
"From my home if I leave before 7am, it’s one hour, but after 7am it can be 1.5 hours."
Ms Kim said it was "a bit disappointing" the frequency of trains wasn’t as she expected. Trains were about 10 minutes apart, instead of the promised five minutes.
Anton from Kellyville estimated he will save 20 minutes each way with the new metro service.
Commuter Anton from Kellyville said he's disappointed the trains are running every 10 minutes, but "it's still better than getting stuck in traffic". Credit:Peter Rae
He was also disappointed the trains were not every five minutes, with a 10-minute wait greeting him for his first trip.
"It’s a bit erratic, but hopefully it’s just teething issues," he said. "It’s still better than getting stuck in the traffic."
Rail union issues warning on disappearing workers
The Rail, Tram and Bus Union has released a statement this morning warning of plans afoot to remove all workers from the driverless train line "in the very near future".
RTBU NSW Secretary Alex Claassens said initially the Metro Company is being told to run every train with a customer service representative on board, but that's not expected to last.
"We’ve long held real concerns about the Sydney Metro system," Mr Claassens said in the statement. "There’s a real risk of overcrowding at stations like Chatswood due to poor planning, and that’s on top of the broader safety concerns we have around the trains being run without drivers and customer service employees on board.
"The travelling public deserve to know their trains are being operated by highly trained, experienced workers who can react quickly in any emergency situation. Without these workers, there is no one to deal with a problem if something goes wrong with the train or on the tracks."
Mr Claassens also urged commuters to be respectful towards transport workers across the network today as they help to manage the first real test of the metro.
A train every five minutes? Not just yet
The indicator boards at Hills Showground this morning show services aren't running every five minutes just yet. Trains are actually running more like every 10 minutes,.
Services running closer to every 10 minutes than every five on the first Monday morning of the Sydney Metro Northwest. Credit:Peter Rae
At Hills Showground, it's a chilly 9 degrees
It's very quiet near the start of the line this morning. Hills Showground is the sixth station on the line that begins in Rouse Hill and ends up at Chatswood. The parking station there so far is empty.
Which all means it's a good time to get a selfie to celebrate the first Monday morning commute on the new line.
A commuter snaps a selfie outside Hills Showground railway station. Credit:Peter Rae
Fares on the new line the same as existing network
While travel on Sunday was free, fares from today are the same as those for the existing rail network, which are based on the distance travelled. The journey time for commuters travelling the 36km from one end to the other is about 37 minutes.
Weekday trains: every five minutes for first six weeks
On weekdays, commuters have been told to expect trains to run every five minutes for the first six weeks in what NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance describes as a "ramp-up period", and every four minutes thereafter.
But Premier Gladys Berejiklian said it could eventually be increased to a train every two minutes if the demand requires it.
Weekend services will run every 10 minutes.
Teething problems as more than 90,000 hopped on the train on its first day
By Matt O'Sullivan
Sydneysiders turned out in the tens of thousands yesterday to ride the city's first metro train line, leading to huge crowds at stations and longer than expected trips for some.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Transport Minister Andrew Constance went for a test ride on the driverless train from Tallawong station in Rouse Hill to Chatswood. Credit:Edwina Pickles
In the first six hours after gates opened, 90,000 people rode on the new 36-kilometre Metro Northwest line from Chatswood to Rouse Hill. The driverless trains were running to a weekend timetable of a service every 10 minutes for the opening day.
While signalling a change to the way Sydneysiders travel on public transport, the journeys proved to be unexpectedly long for some in the early afternoon. A train stopped at Macquarie Park for up to 20 minutes after a door failed to align correctly. The train was taken out of service but not before it caused flow on delays to other trains for a period.
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