William Scott
The New South Wales Government has provided a first look at designs for the new Western Sydney Airport Metro line carriages.
Assembled from a flat pack in a Western Sydney warehouse, the prototype carriage is a full-scale replica which closely mimics the final product’s shape, size and design features.
The mock-up will allow future passengers to test out the carriage and provide feedback on comfort, usability, accessibility and safety – including seat design, boarding experience, and handhold placement.
It will also help transport authorities and manufacturers evaluate and finalise aspects of the train like the interior lighting, emergency features, and passenger information display systems.
Engineers and designers will be able to use the prototype to validate the final design choices, ensuring the layout, materials, and ergonomics meet the intended specifications.
The feedback collated from the extensive assessments has helped refine the final design for the 12 new trains for the Western Sydney Airport line before they go into production later this month. The contract for the new trains was signed in 2022.
Final checks are also being made to confirm the upholstery design for the train seats, which will feature a specially commissioned artwork by Western Sydney creative team BBR, led by Dharug artist Leanne Redpath, with Tina Barahanos and Alexandra Byrne.
The artwork called Ngurra Baduwa includes reference to Ngurra (Country) and Badu (water) running through Cumberland Plain, the region where the new 23km metro line will be located.
The grey and blue patterns and colours for the general seats are reflective of the night sky, while the priority seats are yellow and tell a daytime story about meeting places around waterholes found through fields of wattle flowers.
About 2,300m² of fabric, equivalent in length to five basketball courts, will be needed to upholster every seat in the 12 new trains.
Once operational, the Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport line will have the capacity to move up to 7,740 passengers each hour in each direction between St Marys and Bradfield via Sydney’s new Western Sydney International (Nancy-Bird Walton) Airport.
The new railway will become the transport spine for Greater Western Sydney, connecting residents with job hubs and travellers from the new airport to the rest of Sydney’s public transport system.
New South Wales Deputy Premier and Minister for Western Sydney, Prue Car, said, “Testing of this mock-up carriage has been underway for many months and no stone has been left unturned to ensure passengers enjoy a world-class experience when they step off a plane in Western Sydney and onto a fast and reliable metro.
“Western Sydney artists at BBR have delivered a fantastic upholstery design for the seats that will create a unique identity for this line, and welcome international visitors with incredible Aboriginal cultural heritage and contemporary art.”
New South Wales Minister for Transport, Jo Haylen, said, “Being able to look, feel, touch and experience the new Metros is helping our teams put the finishing touches on these trains before they go into production.
“Every train will be fully accessible, beautifully air-conditioned, and a really comfortable way to travel to Sydney’s new airport.
“Once the new Airport metro line opens, each of the 12 new metro trains will have capacity to comfortably move 645 people between Bradfield, St Marys and the new International Airport.”
Features of the new Western Sydney Airport metro trains
- High resolution displays showing real-time flight information via a direct feed from the Airport
- Multiple seating choices in each carriage, including front and rear facing seating for people travelling in larger groups and traditional metro longitudinal (sideways) seating
- A wide, accessible aisle through the centre of the train to allow for ease of movement for passengers travelling with luggage
- Wheelchair areas and accessible spaces
- Hearing loops in all carriages
- Four bicycle storage spaces on every train
