Bus passengers on Sydney's Northern Beaches and lower North Shore will begin to see higher-capacity articulated buses - known as 'bendy buses' - return to routes over coming weeks and months.
Extra capacity is much-needed after 83 bendys were withdrawn from service in October last year for emergency repairs to cracking identified in their chassis.
More than half of the withdrawn bendy fleet operate on Northern Beaches routes and the loss of capacity has led to longer wait times at bus stops during the peaks due to full loadings on regular-sized buses.
The first six bendys are already being repaired and the first of these will return to service this month, with the majority of the remaining articulated buses to re-enter service over the remainder of 2025.
The complex repair work being carried out in Western Sydney is replacing a section of the chassis and relocating a rear door to improve the structural integrity of the longer buses.
Repaired buses will also be returning to the eastern suburbs and on busy routes to Lane Cove, Macquarie Park, Parramatta and along Victoria Road over the course of 2025.
The Minns Labor Government is purchasing 50 new Euro 6 diesel articulated buses and ten double-decker buses to supplement the B-Line fleet. They are expected to start entering service late in 2025.
At the same time, the Government is introducing 15 new battery-operated electric buses to the South West Link which will freed up more buses to relieve areas where shortages have been the most acute such as Sydney's north.
The new, locally-made Custom Denning electric buses will be reallocated to electrified bus depots once infrastructure upgrades are complete.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Roads John Graham
"I acknowledge the loss of Sydney's bendy buses has been a headache for passengers in areas like the Northern Beaches and want to thank them for their patience as we make these repairs.
"Seeing the first buses ready to hit the road again is a welcome start, but we ask for that same patience to continue as the repair program returns the majority of all those 83 bendys back to service over the months ahead.
"Building up bus capacity across Sydney is a priority for the NSW Government, with 15 new electric buses getting into service this month ahead of a number of new orders to boost the fleet."
