Serious defects, faults and failures were identified in separate reports on Sydney trams two years before a major shutdown, Labor says.
All 12 trams on the city’s inner west line were decommissioned in 2021 to fix cracks up to 30cm long in rolling stock.
Trams borrowed from Sydney’s other light rail line allowed inner west services to resume in February at a reduced frequency, with full service expected by November.
NSW Labor on Friday said a 2019 report concluded components on the trams were expiring earlier than expected because of poor design and manufacturing errors overseas.
The report, by a global rail engineering firm engaged to provide independent advice, supported an earlier report about the defects by Alstrom, which maintains the inner west light rail line.
“It’s clear the government knew back in 2019 that their Inner West Light Rail trams were beset by defects, faults and failures caused by poor design and errors from the overseas manufacturer,” opposition transport spokeswoman Jo Haylen said.
“If the government took action in 2019, we may have been able to avoid the shutdown of the entire Inner West Light Rail service, which caused massive inconvenience for passengers at a significant cost to the public.”
Transport Minister David Elliott said his focus was on fixing the trams and ensuring taxpayers didn’t pay for defects.
“When I inherited the transport portfolio and was briefed on the issues with the inner west light rail vehicles, my focus was and still is on the repair of the trams, the interoperability of the tracks and the reliability of services for commuters,” he said in a statement.
“I have also directed my department to take whatever legal avenues necessary to ensure taxpayers are not left with the bill.”
Transport for NSW said the independent 2019 report was “completely unrelated” to the cracking in trams.
“The cause of the (cracking) damage is still under investigation. There are a number of external reviews which need to run their course,” a spokeswoman said.
Repairs were ongoing to address the other problems outlined in the 2019 report.
