Metro North West & Bankstown Line

This article is about the passenger rail line in Sydney. For the associated railway projects that built this line, see Sydney Metro Northwest and Sydney Metro City & Southwest.

The Metro North West & Bankstown Line (numbered M1) is a rapid transit rail line in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The first and currently only line on the Sydney Metro network, it commenced operation on 26 May 2019, originally running between Tallawong and Chatswood, before the line was extended on 19 August 2024 to Sydenham.

Metro North West & Bankstown Line
An Alstom Metropolis Stock train departing Kellyville, June 2019
Overview
Service type	Rapid transit
Locale	Sydney, Australia
First service	26 May 2019 (Chatswood to Tallawong) 19 August 2024 (Sydenham to Tallawong) 2025 (Bankstown to Tallawong)
Current operator(s)	Metro Trains Sydney
Route
Termini	Tallawong Sydenham
Stops	21
Distance travelled	51.5 km (32.0 mi)
Average journey time	60 minutes
Service frequency	4 minutes (peak) 5–7 minutes (intra-peak) 10 minutes (off-peak)
Technical
Rolling stock	Metropolis Stock fully automated trains, 6 carriages per train
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	1,500 V DC from overhead catenary
Operating speed	Limit of 100 km/h (62 mph)
Track owner(s)	Transport Asset Holding Entity
Route map Richmond line Schofields proposed extension Tallawong depot Tallawong Second Ponds Creek Windsor Road railway bridge Rouse Hill Kellyville Bella Vista Norwest Hills Showground Castle Hill Cherrybrook Main North line to Armidale   Epping Main North line to Strathfield Macquarie University Macquarie Park North Ryde Lane Cove River North Shore line to Hornsby Chatswood North Shore line to Central Crows Nest Victoria Cross Sydney Harbour Barangaroo Martin Place Gadigal Central Waterloo Illawarra line to Illawarra Junction Sydenham depot Sydenham Port Botany line to Port Botany Bankstown line conversion Illawarra line to Bomaderry Marrickville Dulwich Hill Hurlstone Park Canterbury Cooks River Campsie Metropolitan Goods line to Chullora Junction Belmore Lakemba Wiley Park Punchbowl Bankstown Bankstown line to Birrong Metro service Sydney Trains service All Metro stations have wheelchair access

History

Further information: Sydney Metro Northwest and Sydney Metro City & Southwest

Services commenced in May 2019 between Tallawong and Chatswood via Epping as the Metro North West Line, over tracks either newly built or converted from Sydney Trains usage as part of the Sydney Metro Northwest project. In August 2024 the service was renamed as the Metro North West & Bankstown Line and was extended from Chatswood to Sydenham via Central using new tunnels built as part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project. In future, the service is expected to be further extended to Bankstown following completion of the Bankstown railway line conversion.

Service

An Alstom Sydney Metro Metropolis Stock at Macquarie Park station, July 2019

Services on the line are operated by Metro Trains Sydney, a joint venture between the MTR Corporation, John Holland and UGL Rail. Services take 37 minutes to traverse the current 13 stations from end to end, at a frequency at each station of every four minutes during peak hours, every ten minutes in the off peak and every thirty minutes on Sunday to Thursday nights. Upon initial opening, the line previously operated at a frequency at each station of every five minutes during peak hours.

North West Night Bus

In the first six months of operations, regular metro services on the line were supplemented by a late night bus service known as the North West Night Bus, with 13 stops in close proximity to these stations. The bus service operated from Sunday to Wednesday nights after about 9.30 pm in both directions, filling in for final metro services at 10.05 pm from Chatswood and 9.25 pm from Tallawong, charging metro fares and operating at a frequency of every ten minutes. This service was temporary and was withdrawn six months later on 5 November 2019, when the metro reached full operations. The bus service was jointly operated by Transdev NSW and Hillsbus, both of whom previously jointly operated the Station Link services between September 2018 and May 2019.

Stations

Name	Location	Interchanges	Status
Tallawong	Rouse Hill		Constructed as part of the Sydney Metro Northwest project.
Rouse Hill
Kellyville	Kellyville
Bella Vista	Bella Vista
Norwest	Norwest
Hills Showground	Castle Hill
Castle Hill
Cherrybrook	Cherrybrook
Epping	Epping	T9 CCN	Underground platforms constructed as part of the Epping to Chatswood railway line; converted to metro as part of the Sydney Metro Northwest project.
Macquarie University	Macquarie Park		Constructed as part of the Epping to Chatswood railway line; converted to metro as part of the Sydney Metro Northwest project.
Macquarie Park
North Ryde	North Ryde
Chatswood	Chatswood	T1 T9 CCN (CCN peak hours only)	Rebuilt during construction of the Epping to Chatswood railway line; centre platforms converted to metro as part of the Sydney Metro Northwest project.
Crows Nest	Crows Nest		Constructed as part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project.
Victoria Cross	North Sydney
Barangaroo	Barangaroo
Martin Place	Sydney CBD	T4
Gadigal
Central		T1 T2 T3 T4 T8 T9 BMT CCN SCO SHL (SHL peak hours only)
Waterloo	Waterloo
Sydenham	Sydenham	T4 T8	Constructed as part of the Illawarra railway line; western two platforms converted to metro as part of the Sydney Metro City & Southwest project.

External links

• Metro North West & Bankstown Line at Transport for NSW