28th May, 2025.
I talk about trains and what can only be described as a bulging, red-hot potato mess on our train system. I do not mean the mess close to the city but the mess in the regions, where people live with poor rail services year round. While it is easy for both Government and Opposition members to blame each other, the fact is we have an ageing rail fleet with a clogged network that is mapped on the suburbs of the 1970s. We have so much growth in the south-west growth area, including at the airport, and the best we get is the purchase of land between the airport and Campbelltown but no tracks. Where there are tracks outside the comfort of the inner west or eastern suburbs, which have a number of transport options, the service is not what we expect.
Wollondilly has been represented by four members since the electorate was re-established, and its trains run on timetables from decades ago. On top of that, the trains are consistently late. Trains in my community are not delayed by fallen lines. Delays and cancellations are a reality. Wollondilly residents saw the uproar in the city; they heard the calls to fix the system and the promise by the Premier to provide a free day's travel. We understand the calls for free transport every day. The Southern Highlands line is the sole public transport option for Wollondilly. There are also two private buses in Wollondilly—yes, just two—but remember that we are as large as the whole of the Sydney metropolitan area, and those buses do not suit office workers as they travel through the villages during the day.
As of 5 April 2025, patronage in the Southern Highlands was 69,571. That is 40,000 less than the Hunter, 800,000 less than the Blue Mountains, just under a million less than the South Coast line and a whopping 1.5 million less than the Central Coast to Newcastle line. This line goes to Canberra, the nation's capital, so it is a lost opportunity and great disappointment. The Endeavour railcars that service the track are diesel units that were built in Dandenong, and they are ageing. Many seats are broken or torn after years of use. Sometimes the toilets do not work, and the trains seldom run on time. The trains are due to be replaced, and the artist's impression of the new red sets with three carriages look great, but all we get is nice pictures to look at while we wait for infrequent trains that have a good chance of being late. That is happening in a region where tourism is premium.
On a side note, I have spoken to the Southern Highlands Water Polo group in the past fortnight about the recent pool renewal in Wingecarribee. It is worth noting that we have no full-sized indoor swimming pool, and we do not even have viable transport to travel to other areas that are fortunate enough to have better facilities. We have a great need for transport and more investment from the Government. This is not a call for additional trains or replacements. Passengers would be content with the existing rolling stock if they had a reliable timetable and services to suit all hours. Running trains on the line every half an hour is ambitious, but we should work towards it. But that is all long term, and even the short-term announcement of the set replacement is yet to be made.
With a government that promises to do better and treat everyone the same, the answer for the people of Wollondilly is simple: We need free transport every day on the Southern Highlands line. When the trains are late and chaotic for one day in Sydney, free transport is provided for a day, so it is right to conclude that transport should be free nearly every day in the Wollondilly and Southern Highlands seeing as we have chaos nearly every day.