Sydney’s Southwest Metro has marked another milestone in its journey to realisation with the completion of an intensive five-week Trial Running programme involving more than 130 operational scenarios.
The programme, which aimed to test the Southwest line under a wide range of operating conditions, included multi-agency emergency response exercises in a bid to confirm that the network is capable of performing safely and reliably once passenger services commence.
One of the exercises, which, more than 12 months in the planning, simulated a fire on a moving train that came to a controlled stop near Bankstown Station. The exercise involved Fire and Rescue NSW, Police and Transport for NSW, and resulted in the safe evacuation of around 300 volunteers.
With the trial runs now complete, the operator is set to continue refining systems including mechanical gap fillers and management of corridor protection in response to a range of scenarios.
In the lead up to the commencement of passenger services, testing will include running driverless trains over set periods in order to assess how the network may perform under different operating and journey time scenarios.
As work continues, Sydney Metro and operator MTS will finalise all documentation for the independent regulatory assessment ahead of the formal accreditation process.
Final completion works are now underway across ten upgraded stations from Marrickville to Bankstown, including remaining asphalting on platforms, fencing remediation work, signage installation, along with plaza and concourse finishes.
The testing and commissioning programme for Southwest Metro began with the movement of the first metro train onto the converted line in April 2025 and, since then, more than 5,800 of the required 9,000 testing hours have been completed, as well as 24,235 of the required 30,000 kilometres of testing.
