The journey

The Rolling Stock PPP Project was awarded in 2006, with the detailed design of the Waratah trains completed in 2009, the maintenance centre commissioned in 2010, and the 78 Waratah sets delivered into service between June 2011 and May 2014.

With the through life support phase now well underway, strong collaborative relationships exist between Sydney Trains, Reliance Rail and Downer EDI Rail. The contract is well understood, with significant operational experience since the fleet started passenger service in 2011, providing excellent performance.

Strong performance of Reliance Rail’s Waratah fleet has led to Transport for NSW procuring 24 new Waratah B trains directly from Downer Rail, based on the original Waratah design, which are now in service. Another 17 of the Waratah B sets have been ordered and are expected to be in service by late 2020.

Under an agreement with Sydney Trains, the Sydney Trains Waratah B fleet (24 eight car sets) and Millennium fleet (35 four car sets) are now maintained at the AMC under a direct contract between Sydney Trains and Downer Rail.

Currently the Waratah fleet is in the final stages of having an Automatic Train Protection (ATP) system fitted under a contract variation from Sydney Trains. The ATP system is being installed by Sydney Trains across the network to improve safety performance across all fleets.