The new Inter City Fleet trains set to move people between Newcastle and Sydney have hit another hurdle.
Document tabled in the NSW Parliament reveal the doors on the carriages had a 75 per cent failure rate during testing.
The trains which were built in South Korea have been plagued by a number of issues since they were originally purchased in 2016.
In 2018, it was revealed the trains were too big for tunnels .. At the time this was remedied by Transport for NSW who said current safety standards would be relaxed and a number of tunnels would be modified to fit the services.
2019 saw a ‘dangerous’ design flaw uncovered by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union. They said transport workers noticed a glitch which hinders train guards ability to see passengers getting on and off the trains. The issue was that guards were not able to open their door to monitor commuters during the time before the train would depart. The RBTU warned the flaw would lead to incidents such as people falling between the train and the platform.
The first of the trains were due to be carrying passengers between Newcastle and Sydney by late 2019. Transport for NSW says the delay was a result of production issues overseas, as well as COVID-19.
Shadow Minister for Transport Jo Haylen says the procurement of transport has been a debacle.
““First these trains didn’t fit the tracks, then they didn’t have the required safety features, they’re 18 months late, they still haven’t carried a single passenger and now we’ve learnt that the doors fail 75 per cent of the time.
“The Government’s transport policies are in complete chaos,” Ms Haylen said.