A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
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 A Tangara train with CityRail branding, 2007 | |
| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 16 January 1989 |
| Dissolved | 30 June 2013 |
| Superseding agencies | |
| Jurisdiction | New South Wales |
| Headquarters | Sydney |
| Parent agency | State Rail Authority (1989–2003) RailCorp (2004–2013) |
| Key document |
|
| Website | www.cityrail.info |
CityRail was a passenger railway brand operated by the State Rail Authority from 1989 to 2003 and by RailCorp from 2003 to 2013 with services in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities in New South Wales, Australia. It was established in January 1989 and abolished in June 2013 when it was superseded by Sydney Trains and NSW TrainLink.
In June 2013, it operated 307 stations and over 2,060 kilometres of track, extending north to the upper Hunter Valley, south to the Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands regions and west to Bathurst. In the year ended 30 June 2012, 306 million journeys were made on the network.[1]
History
Structure
CityRail was established pursuant to the Transport Administration Act, 1988 (NSW), and was first mentioned as an entity distinct from the State Rail Authority in the Parliament of New South Wales by then governor James Rowland on 21 February 1990.[2] CityRail adopted a blue and yellow version of the State Rail Authority L7 logo, to fit into its new blue and yellow colour scheme.[3] This logo continued to be in use until 2010, when it was replaced by the Waratah logo of the NSW Government.[3]
On 1 January 2004, RailCorp assumed all functions of the State Rail Authority, and later the functions of the Rail Infrastructure Corporation and Rail Access Corporation.[4] This resulted in CityRail becoming a subsidiary of RailCorp, along with CountryLink.[4] CityRail became defunct on 1 July 2013, with Sydney Trains taking over suburban services and NSW TrainLink taking over Intercity and regional services.[5]
Operational history
When the CityRail brand was introduced the State Rail Authority was part way through taking delivery of 450 Tangara carriages. With these new carriages in service, the last single deck suburban sets were withdrawn in 1992, and the last U set interurban sets were withdrawn in 1996.[6][7]
In February 1994, the first of 15 two-carriage Endeavour railcars was delivered.[8][9] These replaced Class 620/720 railcars, Class 900 railcars and locomotive-hauled stock.[citation needed]
In May 2000, the Airport & East Hills Line opened.[citation needed] In July 2002, the first of 141 M set carriages entered service.[10][better source needed] In November 2006, the first of seven two-carriage Hunter railcar trains entered service.[11][better source needed]
In December 2006, the first of 221 Oscar carriages entered service on the South Coast Line.[citation needed] In February 2009, the Epping to Chatswood railway line opened with shuttle services[12] and was integrated into the Northern Line service later that year.[13]
In July 2011, the first Waratah trains entered service to replace the S sets, although it was announced in 2013 that some S sets would stay.[14] In October 2012, a new service from Bathurst to Sydney commenced.[15]
Operations
Fleet
At the time of its cessation in June 2013, CityRail operated eight electric multiple unit classes for suburban and interurban working and two diesel multiple unit classes. All CityRail electric trains used 1500 V DC overhead electrification and travel on 1,435mm standard gauge tracks. Double deck rollingstock was first introduced in 1964 and after 1996, all electric multiple units were double deck.
| Class | Image | Type | Top speed | Carriages | Entered Service | Formation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| km/h | mph | ||||||
| V sets | 
|
Electric multiple unit | 115 | 71 | 204 | 1970–1989 | 4 cars |
| S sets | 
|
509 | 1972–1980 | ||||
| K sets | 
|
160 | 1981–1985 | ||||
| C sets | .jpg)
|
56 | 1986–1987 | ||||
| T sets | _at_Central_Station,_Sydney.jpg)
|
447 | 1988–1995 | ||||
| Endeavour railcars | .jpg)
|
Diesel multiple unit | 160 | 99 | 28 | 1994–1996 | 2 cars |
| M sets | 
|
Electric multiple unit | 130 | 81 | 140 | 2002–2005 | 4 cars |
| Hunter railcars | 
|
Diesel multiple unit | 160 | 99 | 14 | 2006–2007 | 2 cars |
| H sets | 
|
Electric multiple unit | 130 | 81 | 220 | 2006–2012 | 4 cars |
| A sets | 
|
Electric multiple unit | 130 | 81 | 626 | 2011–2014 | 8 cars |
Former fleet
The following table consists of trains that were in the CityRail fleet which were withdrawn prior to CityRail's demise:
| Type | Image | In service | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard suburban carriage stock | 
|
1925–1992 | Also known as Red Rattlers. Several preserved. |
| Tulloch suburban carriage stock | 1940–1992 | Also known as Red Rattlers. Several preserved. | |
| Sputnik suburban carriage stock | .jpg)
|
1957–1993 | Also known as Red Rattlers or Sputniks. Several preserved. |
| 900/800 class railcar | .jpg)
|
1951–1994 | Several preserved. |
| U set | _at_the_Junee_Roundhouse_Museum.jpg)
|
1958–1996 | Also known as U-Boats. Several preserved. |
| Tulloch double deck carriage stock | 
|
1964–2004 | Operated with single and double-deck power cars. Several preserved. |
| 620/720 class railcar | .jpg)
|
1961–2007 | Several preserved. |
| 422 Class | 1969/70–1994 (passenger service) | Several in freight operation, several scrapped. | |
| 44 Class | 1957–1994 (passenger service) | Several in operation, several scrapped, several preserved | |
| RUB type carriage stock | 
|
1949–1994 (CityRail service) | Several scrapped, several preserved |
The CityRail network was divided into three sectors, based around three maintenance depots.[16] EMU trainsets were identified by target plates, which are exhibited on the front lower nearside of driving carriages.[17] Target designations and set numbers were used in identifying EMU trainsets. The composition and formations of trainsets, and the target designations were subject to alteration.
| Sector # | Depot | Serviced lines | Target plate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mortdale | Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra and South Coast | Red |
| 2 | Flemington | Airport & East Hills, Bankstown, Carlingford, Cumberland, Inner West, Olympic Park and South | Blue |
| 3 | Hornsby | North Shore, Northern, Western, Central Coast and Blue Mountains | Black |
All V sets which operated on the Newcastle and Blue Mountains lines, were serviced at Flemington Depot. All M and H sets, which had a green target plate, were serviced at Eveleigh Maintenance Centre.
Ticketing
For most of the brand's life CityRail's ticketing system was the Automated Fare Collection System (AFC). Dating from 1992, it was based on magnetic stripe technology and was interoperable with the Sydney Buses and Sydney Ferries systems. In later years the network was incorporated into the MyZone ticketing system, which retained the AFC technology but extended the validity of multi-modal tickets to private buses and light rail.
Unlike the ticketing systems of other cities in Australia, most of CityRail's ticket prices were calculated on the distance travelled, and were proven to be the most expensive tickets of any major city public transport system.[18]
Performance
According to the 2003 Parry Report, "The interaction of metropolitan, suburban, intercity and freight lines and services has resulted in an overly complex system.[19] This complexity has contributed in part to the organisation being widely criticised for poor reliability and safety. CityRail was also enormously expensive."
On-time running improved after new timetables were introduced in 2005 and 2006.[20] The newly introduced timetable increased station dwell and journey times.[21]
In October 2012, a report published by PricewaterhouseCoopers found CityRail performed poorly compared to many metro services from 27 other major world cities. Sydney was ranked as the fourth-worst public train system while being proven to have the most expensive tickets of any major city public transport system.[18]
Patronage
The following table lists patronage figures for the network during the corresponding financial year. Australia's financial years start on 1 July and end on 30 June. Expansions and contractions of the network and major events that affected the number of journeys made are included as notes.
1990s
|
Year | 1991–92 | 1992–93 | 1993–94 | 1994–95 | 1995–96 | 1996–97 | 1997–98 | 1998–99 | 1999–00 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patronage (millions) |
243.8 | 229.8 | 234.8 | 249.6 | 256.4 [a] |
264.7 [b] |
266.5 [c] |
270.5 | 278.7 [d] | ||||
| Reference | [22] | [23] | |||||||||||
2000s
|
Year | 2000–01 | 2001–02 | 2002–03 | 2003–04 | 2004–05 | 2005–06 | 2006–07 | 2007–08 | 2008–09 | 2009–10 | ||
| Patronage (millions) |
302.6 [e] |
276.4 | 273.4 | 273.3 | 270.3 | 273.7 | 281.5 | 296.1 | 292.2 [f] |
289.1 | |||
| Reference | [23] | [24] | [25] | [26] | |||||||||
2010s
|
Year | 2010–11 | 2011–12 | 2012–13 | |||||||||
| Patronage (millions) |
294.5 | 304.2 | 306.2 [g] | ||||||||||
| Reference | [26] | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
- ^ Pippita services ceased in October 1995
- ^ Cumberland Line services introduced in November 1996
- ^ Olympic Park railway line opened in March 1998
- ^ Airport railway line opened in May 2000
- ^ Sydney Olympic and Paralympic games held in September and October 2000
- ^ Epping to Chatswood railway line opened in February 2009
- ^ Bathurst services introduced in October 2012
Network
CityRail operated eleven suburban lines, four intercity services, one regional service, and five connecting bus services, plus a late night bus service across metropolitan Sydney.
Suburban lines
| Line colour and name | Between | Train Types | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Airport & East Hills Line | City Circle and Macarthur via either Sydenham (peak) or Airport | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
Bankstown Line | City Circle and Liverpool or Lidcombe, via Bankstown | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
Carlingford Line | Clyde and Carlingford, with limited services to Lidcombe and Central (i) | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
Cumberland Line | Blacktown and Campbelltown | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra Line | Bondi Junction and Waterfall or Cronulla | T, S, K & C set |
 |
Inner West Line | City Circle and Bankstown or Liverpool (peak), via Regents Park | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
Northern Line | Epping and Hornsby via Strathfield, Central and Macquarie Park | S, K, C & T set |
 |
North Shore Line | Central and Berowra via Gordon | S, K, C & T set |
 |
Olympic Park Line | Lidcombe and Olympic Park. Some services operated between Central (i) and Olympic Park, particularly during special events | S, K, C, M & T sets |
 |
South Line | City Circle and Campbelltown, via Granville | S, K, C, M & T sets |
|
Western Line | Central and Emu Plains or Richmond via Parramatta | S, K, C & T set |
:*In peak hour on the North Shore Line, some outer-suburban services run to Gosford and Wyong, and some Western Line services extended to Springwood.
:*Inbound Inner West and South services generally travelled around the City Circle in the clockwise direction. Inbound Airport and East Hills and Bankstown services generally travelled around the City Circle in the anti-clockwise direction.
*Central (i) is a standard abbreviation used on timetables and station screens. It signifies Central's country and intercity platforms .
Intercity lines
