It was a "difficult decision to make" but Transport for NSW has issued an apology to thousands of commuters on their way to Dubbo and beyond the Orana region as ongoing strike by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) remained unresolved.
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Yesterday's Sydney-wide industrial action halted the daily Dubbo XPT and beyond the western plains train runs and disruptions to train travels are expected to continue until Monday, March 7 prompting an apology from TransportNSW.
Commuters have been advised to use alternative travel modes and to allow for extra travel time to Dubbo and Orana region 396 kilometres northwest of Sydney. Coaches can also take commuters to Dubbo through the NSW TrainLink services from Lithgow.
"It was clear at midnight following a weekend of intensive negotiations between Transport for NSW, NSW TrainLink and the RBTU, that Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink would not be able to safely operate train services," the Transport for NSW statement said.
"This was a difficult decision to make but we cannot and will not compromise on safety. We apologise to customers for what is clearly an unacceptable course of action."
Last week, Transport for NSW Secretary Rob Sharp and senior executives held marathon meetings with rail union representatives but "could not reach agreement, leaving no option but to seek a halt to the ongoing protected industrial action."
TransportNSW has been negotiating with the RTBU in the last six months holding more than 30 bargaining meetings with no conclusive agreement reached so far.
Mr Sharp said while negotiation with RBTU are ongoing they are focused on ensuring travellers on the NSW train network are safe at this "critical time" particularly those who solely rely on public transport system.
"As the NSW economy reopens and people return to their daily lives it's vital that they do not face disruptions across the transport network that could not just cause them inconvenience but harm business and the NSW economy," Mr Sharp said in a statement.
"During our negotiations, we have made reasonable concessions and we continue to encourage the unions to come back to the bargaining table rather than take action, to work with us to make two new Enterprise Agreements that benefit not just our employees, but also our customers."
"We are making this application to seek the ruling of the independent industrial umpire to avert the difficulties that the travelling public will face over the next two weeks. This is also at a time when the Premier is relaxing COVID restrictions to provide greater flexibility and certainty for the people of NSW this includes people returning to workplaces, schools and tertiary institutions."
The Dubbo XPT runs daily and Transport for NSW said the train workers strike was expected to "severely impact the rail network, inconveniencing hundreds of thousands of commuters and costing millions of dollars" to business and services.
TransportNSW has filed a legal action against the RBTU before the Fair Work Commission calling for the striking workers to suspend or terminate further industrial actions affecting the state's rail network and travellers.
