Sydney metro station to stay open during New Year’s Eve celebrations

2 months ago 4

An underground metro train station on Sydney’s harbour front will remain open during New Year’s Eve celebrations, in a departure from transport logistics adopted for festivities in 2024.

With the NSW government expecting a million revellers along the harbour foreshore, authorities are advising people to plan their journeys in and out of the inner city and travel on public transport due to road closures.

Following the Bondi Beach attack that killed 15 people and injured dozens more, Premier Chris Minns urged the public against being cowered by the terrorist act, and to show defiance by not allowing it to change the way they live their lives.

Revellers queue outside the Domain in Sydney’s CBD to get to the best vantage points for New Year’s Eve fireworks.

“We can’t get cowered by these terrorists. Ultimately, that’s what they hope. They want to change the way we live, the way we work, the way we have fun, the way we celebrate, the way we bring in the new year. And we have to show defiance to that kind of ideology,” he said.

To handle New Year’s Eve crowds, more than 1000 extra train, bus and light rail services will be put on – about 40 per cent higher than the busiest weekday – and public transport will operate continuously for 46 hours.

It will be the second New Year’s Eve that the city-section of the M1 metro line has been operating, which boosts capacity on the rail network by 10 per cent.

Unlike last year, Barangaroo metro station will remain open through the night to help get people in and out of the inner harbour precinct.

Barangaroo metro station will remain open during the New Year’s Eve celebrations.

Transport for NSW secretary Josh Murray said the greatest challenge in handling crowds was just after the 9pm fireworks and about 12.15am when people depart for home en masse.

“It is essential to plan ahead, work out your options and be aware that the city and our transport hubs operate differently on New Year’s Eve. Some stations will close, and access to services will change progressively as roads close and vantage points reach capacity,” he said.

Murray said the longer opening of Barangaroo station provided another direct link for people to get to and from the harbour foreshore, although some of its use during the night might be altered based on police advice about crowds.

“There will be hundreds of extra metro services, running every four minutes from 3pm in the afternoon,” he said.

While Barangaroo station will be open longer, Murray said there would be limited transport options directly to Circular Quay from the afternoon as crowds fill prime vantage points.

From noon, buses will not run to Circular Quay and will relocate to Martin Place, while light rail services will terminate at Town Hall from 2pm.

Trains will not stop at Circular Quay station from 3pm, and event goers heading to the harbour front will need to catch transport to nearby Wynyard, St James, Martin Place, Town Hall or Gadigal stations and continue on foot.

On the harbour, some ferry wharves began closing from 10am, and all ferries will stop running by around 5.30pm. Limited services will run after the midnight fireworks.

Roads at the northern end of the CBD, including the Cahill Expressway, began to be closed from 4am. The Sydney Harbour Bridge will be shut from 11pm until 1.30am, as well as city-bound lanes of the Anzac Bridge, M4 and M8 tunnels city-bound and Iron Cove Link towards Anzac Bridge.

“There will be widespread parking restrictions in effect – so it’s definitely best to leave the car at home,” Murray said.

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