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Cumberland Line

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The Cumberland Line (numbered T5, coloured magenta) is a commuter rail line operated by Sydney Trains in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It connects Schofields and Leppington stations in the western suburbs. Limited services extend from Schofields to Richmond. The line opened in 1996, following the construction of a 'Y-link' track between Harris Park and Merrylands stations. The intention of this link was to allow direct services to operate from the south west suburbs to Parramatta and Blacktown without requiring a change of trains at Granville. The line takes its name from the Cumberland Plain on which much of Western Sydney was built.

Cumberland Line
An M set at Warwick Farm station
Overview
OwnerTransport Asset Holding Entity
LocaleSydney, New South Wales
Termini
Stations30
Service
TypeCommuter rail
Operator(s)Sydney Trains
Depot(s)Mortdale
Rolling stockM, A sets
History
Opened1996; 28 years ago (1996)
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Sydney rail services
Metro North West & Bankstown
North Shore & Western
Leppington & Inner West
Liverpool & Inner West
Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra
Cumberland
Lidcombe & Bankstown
Olympic Park
Airport & South
Northern

History

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Cumberland Line history
 
Pre-2013 route (Blacktown to Campbelltown)

Upon its opening in 1996, the line had a regular half-hourly service in each direction consisting of 38 journeys per day. Subsequent timetables saw its services significantly reduced to the point of running only during weekday peak hours, and from 2005 to 2013 the line only ran in one direction at a time: two services ran in the morning peak from Campbelltown towards Blacktown and three services ran in the opposite direction in the evening. Some services operated to or from Quakers Hill or Schofields on the Richmond line, but the line's official terminus on network maps and other material remained at Blacktown.

Prior to the Y-Link's opening, passengers travelling between the Western and South lines were required to change trains at Granville. With the reduction in services to peak hours only, this travelling strategy was resumed by most commuters.

In 2006, the then-Iemma Labor Government's NSW State Plan committed to re-introduce a regular half-hourly service to the Cumberland line during 2007 "subject to detailed timetable and train planning... and fleet delivery, availability and rostering".[1] A CityRail news release on 15 December confirmed this intention, based on the gradual introduction of the then-new OSCAR (H set) trains, which would displace outer suburban Tangara G sets; the latter trains then reassigned to suburban service.[2] This promise was not delivered, and the Cumberland Line remained a peak-hour-only service with 4 car trains.

Daytime half-hourly services were re-introduced on 21 October 2013. Services finished in the early evening and did not operate on weekends. At this time, the line was also officially extended to Schofields, where most northbound services terminated.

As part of a major timetable change for the Sydney Trains network on 26 November 2017, Cumberland Line services were modified to no longer travel to and from Campbelltown, instead starting and terminating at Leppington. Simultaneous changes to the Airport, Inner West & South Line saw that line split into the Inner West & Leppington Line and Airport & South Line. These changes mean the section of the network between Glenfield and Macarthur is served exclusively by services operating via the East Hills railway line.[3][4][5] The changes also saw late night and weekend services introduced on the Cumberland Line.[6] The late night services extend to Richmond, replacing T1 services at these times.[3] On weekends, trains operate between Schofields and Liverpool only with early morning and late night services extending to Leppington and Richmond.

Description of route

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Diagram of the T5 Cumberland Line

Physically, the line consists of the Richmond railway line from Schofields/Richmond to Blacktown, the Main Western Line from Blacktown station to Harris Park, the 'Y-link' as described below, the "Old Main South" between Merrylands and Cabramatta, the Main South Line between Cabramatta and Glenfield, and the South West Rail Link between Edmondson Park and Leppington.

 
T5 interactive map

Trains and Services

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During the week, the Cumberland Line usually has 2 tph in each direction between Schofields and Leppington. In the peak, the services usually only run till Blacktown due to other services. On the weekend, this line holds 2 tph in both directions between Schofields and Liverpool. The line is usually serviced by 4-car Millenniums, though sometimes being serviced by Waratah A sets.

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Track arrangement at the Y Link

The 'Y-link' was opened in 1996 as part of former Prime Minister Paul Keating's 'Building Better Cities' programme in recognition of Parramatta's place as the capital of Sydney's west.[7] It cost $80 million to construct, and required the construction of a little over one kilometre of new track and no new stations. This track consists of the creation of a triangular junction at the junction of the 'Old Main South' and the 'Main Western Line by laying track between Merrylands and Harris Park stations. The work included a new flyover of the 'Up Old Main South' over these new tracks.

Cumberland Line stations

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Name Railway line Serving suburbs Other lines
Richmond - Leppington
Richmond Richmond Richmond, North Richmond
East Richmond Richmond
Clarendon Clarendon
Windsor Windsor
Mulgrave Mulgrave
Vineyard Vineyard
Riverstone Riverstone
Schofields Schofields
Quakers Hill Quakers Hill
Marayong Marayong
Blacktown Blacktown
Seven Hills Main Western Seven Hills
Toongabbie Toongabbie
Pendle Hill Pendle Hill
Wentworthville Wentworthville
Westmead Westmead
Parramatta Parramatta
Harris Park Harris Park
Merrylands Old Main South Merrylands
Guildford Guildford
Yennora Yennora
Fairfield Fairfield
Canley Vale Canley Vale
Cabramatta Main South Cabramatta
Warwick Farm Warwick Farm
Liverpool Liverpool
Casula Casula
Glenfield Glenfield
Edmondson Park South West Edmondson Park
Leppington Leppington

Patronage

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The following table shows the patronage of Sydney Trains network for the year ending 30 June 2024.

2023–24 Sydney Trains patronage by line[n.b. 1] [8]
86,736,689
47,048,199
20,178,194 [n.b. 2]
54,802,802
8,028,853
– [n.b. 3]
1,345,017
37,691,564
22,303,028
  1. ^ Figures based on Opal tap on and tap off data
  2. ^ T3 patronage from former route via Bankstown.
  3. ^ T6 services commenced on 19 October 2024.

References

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  1. ^ New South Wales Government (2006). NSW State Plan: Appendices. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  2. ^ "The first Oscars are out and about". Rail Corporation New South Wales. 15 December 2006. Archived from the original on 18 January 2010. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
  3. ^ a b "Changes to Sydney's train network" (PDF). Transport for NSW. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 August 2017. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  4. ^ Barr, Eliza (27 February 2017). "Southwest Sydney train service to increase with new peak hour trains and north-south connection from Leppington to Parramatta and Blacktown". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 1 March 2017.
  5. ^ O'Sullivan, Matt (27 February 2017). "Decision on rail link to new Sydney airport 'many years off', Transport Minister Andrew Constance says". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 28 February 2017.
  6. ^ Transport for NSW (27 February 2017), "More Trains, More Services for South Western Sydney" Retrieved 27 February 2017
  7. ^ "CityRail: Have times changed?". Railway Digest, November 2005. ARHS NSW Division. Archived from the original on 17 March 2012. Retrieved 17 February 2007.
  8. ^ "Train Patronage – Monthly Figures". Transport for NSW. Retrieved 30 October 2024.
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