As summer holidays come to an end, North-West Sydney residents can look forward to more buses, more often with a New Year timetable shakeup.
Starting today, major routes connecting areas including Tallawong, Rouse Hill, Riverstone, Box Hill, Bella Vista and North Kellyville will see more services, longer operating hours, and increased frequency for some routes, especially at peak times.
106 new services each week will link commuters to North West metro stations. They join 144 services each week that started moving commuters to Metro Stations on Sydney's North Shore in August. These changes mean more commuters can leave the car at home and enjoy a combination of frequent and reliable metro and bus services.
Bus routes that link commuters in the north west to Rouse Hill Metro station will see extra services, including the 601, 605, 643, 740, 742, 746, 747 and the 748.
In Riverstone and Tallawong, services on route 742 between Riverstone and Rouse Hill will run more frequently across the week - every 30 minutes during morning and afternoon peak periods, weeknights, and on weekends between 8am and 6pm. Buses will also run until later in the night on all days of the week.
One of the major changes is to route 748, which will now extend to the growing community of Melonba and operate via Jerralong Drive in Schofields to give growing suburbs better access to bus services. The 748 will then connect with train and metro services at Schofields and Tallawong.
Bus services in the growing Gables and Box Hill area are also improving, with the 643 route frequency increasing to ever 15 minutes in the morning and afternoon peak, and services starting earlier on weekdays.
On route 740 from Gables to Rouse Hill, buses will run more frequently during morning and afternoon peaks and later into the evening. The service will also make the most of a $1.75 million investment to extend the southbound bus only lane on Windsor Road through the Mile End Road intersection at Rouse Hill to reduce delays and improve travel times for passengers. The 643 will also make the most of this new infrastructure.
Route 746 from Riverstone to Rouse Hill will have earlier and later operating hours on weekdays, and additional service arriving at Rouse Hill after the busy morning peak.
Similarly, 747 passengers between Marsden Park and Rouse Hill via Riverstone will see additional services. Between Riverstone and Tallawong, buses will run more frequently during morning and afternoon peak periods. Services will also start earlier and finish later across the week. Route 732 will also run earlier on weekdays and more frequently during weeknights between Quakers Hill, Tallawong and Rouse Hill.
Meanwhile, extra services will be added to route 745 from St Marys to Norwest Private Hospital via Bella Vista Station, extending its operating hours later on weeknights.
In other service enhancements, route 601 from Rouse Hill to Parramatta via Baulkham Hills will have an extra service in the morning peak, providing commuters with additional travel options, while weekday morning peak frequency will be improved to 10 minutes on route 605 from North Kellyville to Rouse Hill.
These timetable changes follow a $139.5 million investment announced in the 2024-25 budget to improve buses across Western Sydney.
Changes outside the North West
Services across the Northern Beaches and lower North Shore will have their timetables tweaked to improve on-time running and reflect changing traffic patterns.
Minor timetable changes will also be made to services in the Eastern Suburbs, largely around the Randwick area, with a key change being the 339 service from Central to Clovelly no longer including a loop around Belmore Park and Eddy Avenue, with Foveaux Street becoming the key stop for passengers heading to or from Central Station.
Minor adjustments to improve capacity and reliability will also be introduced to timetables on other routes, including additional capacity for some routes servicing Green Square and the University of NSW.
Passengers can plan their new bus journeys online by visiting Transport's Trip Planner at transportnsw.info/trip
Deputy Premier, Minister for Western Sydney and Member for Londonderry Prue Car said:
"People living in our fast-growing suburbs need better access to reliable public transport options.
"The new and expanded bus services we are delivering will improve connections to the North West Metro for our growing suburbs.
"The Minns Labor Government is delivering the infrastructure Sydney's North West needs."
Minister for Transport Jo Haylen said:
"When buses are frequent, reliable and accessible, people leave their cars at home and love their buses.
"We're fulfilling our commitment to invest in North-West bus services, to connect people to Metro stations, schools, shops and work.
We'll be increasing services on popular routes, running some later into the night or starting some earlier in the morning.
Member for Riverstone Warren Kirby said:
"Providing more public transport services will take pressure off our busy roads and carpark."
"I'm particularly excited to see the extension of the of the 748 down Jerralong Drive and Hambledon Road, which will mean 5,500 people will be able to travel to Tallawong Metro Station without needing to find a park."
Peter Primrose MLC said:
"There are significant changes to bus services in Box Hill, which will connect these growing communities to Sydney's world class Metro. We will keep listening to local residents and improving bus services."
