Transport chaos continues in NSW amid ongoing train and bus driver strike
Commuters are being warned to brace for more transport delays this afternoon amid ongoing industrial action by rail and bus workers across Sydney and NSW.
Rail, Tram and Bus Union NSW members have refused to drive overseas-made trains, which constitute 75 per cent of NSW's rail network.
Union members have voiced safety concerns, and are calling for a pay increase of more than 2.5 per cent.
READ MORE: NSW teachers strike today over pay and staff shortages
Train drivers are striking across NSW today. Louise Kennerley/SMH
"Every time we buy stuff from overseas it has problems," RTBU NSW secretary Alex Claassens told Today this morning.
"We bought all these brand new trains from South Korea that have been sitting there for months but we can't operate them because they are not safe.
He said while he was grateful the government had undertaken negotiations, it was time to put words on paper.
"We are very concerned about the safety of the network, constant privatisation, buying from overseas," he said.
"They are the obvious things that come up straight away when you start sitting down with the workers that are involved with providing transport across Sydney."
The strike today will result in reduced and delayed services, longer journey times, and in some locations, buses replacing trains.
But it's also day two of the bus strike in Sydney, with the focus today moving to services in the city's south-west.
The 24 hours of industrial action started at midnight.
READ MORE: Police fatally shoot alleged gunman, ending six-hour siege in Brisbane
A second day of industrial action by bus drivers will also take place. Nine
"The bus drivers walking off the job today have spent the last year exposing themselves to COVID-19 to serve the public, as have rail workers and teachers," Unions NSW secretary Mark Morey said yesterday.
"Now as inflation runs rampant, they are being rewarded with a pay cut and increased workloads."
Commuters are advised to plan ahead and make early starts on their trips today.
READ MORE: Toddler killed, sibling and parents injured in Melbourne crash
On Friday, bus and train drivers will come together to go on strike for two hours during the afternoon peak.
Today's strikes will also coincide with thousands of teachers also walking off the job, calling for a larger pay increase and voicing concerns over staffing levels.
Share a tip-off, video or photo with us
