Plans to ditch sleeper cars on XPT 'short-sighted' as train travel grows

The Rail, Tram and Bus Union has launched an online petition, calling on the NSW government to retain sleeper carriages on the regional rail network when the ageing infrastructure is retired.

In 2019 the then-Coalition NSW government signed a contract for the manufacture of the new regional rail fleet replacing the XPT, Endeavor and Xplorer train sets.

The contract did not include replacing the sleeper carriages, meaning they will likely get the axe when upgrades are eventually carried out.

A community campaign was also launched following the news, with rail workers calling for the sleeper carriages from Sydney and Melbourne and Brisbane and Casino to be saved.

Riverina resident Darren Thompson catches the XPT from Wagga to Sydney regularly and is opposed to the culling of sleeping carriages.

"They shouldn't get rid of them," he said.

"You can't sleep on the train without them, you need private carriages."

On the existing sleeper carriages, each compartment contains two single beds and has access to a shared bathroom and shower.

In the last two years the patronage for overnight service departures from Wagga have increased.

In 2022, 3229 people travelled on the Sydney to Melbourne XPT and 5864 travelled the Melbourne to Sydney XPT overnight.

That rose to 4656 people leaving for Melbourne and 8582 for Sydney on the night XPT in 2023.

RTBU NSW branch secretary Alex Claassens said the decision to not replace the sleeper carriages was short-sighted.

"Around the world we're seeing more interest in rail tourism, and people looking for niche experiences like sleeper trains," he said.

"In fact, in NSW we're seeing an incredible uptake in regional train travel as we emerge from the pandemic.

"No date has been set for the delivery of the new train sets, so there is still time to fix this mistake, and to make sure the new trains can provide the same level of service as the old trains.

"That's why we're calling for the Minns state government to arrange for a local train manufacturer to design and build new sleeper carriages compatible with the new trains."

A Transport for NSW spokesperson said Transport for NSW was currently investigating fleet deployment and service planning options to address the capacity issues.

"A team of workers in central west NSW will soon start completion works and testing of the first train of the state's new Regional Rail fleet, following its arrival at the fleet maintenance centre in Dubbo," they said.

RTBU national executive director Stewart Prins said sleeper carriages play a vital role for people in regional areas.

"It's really important that regional communities have access to comfortable, convenient and affordable low-emission transport options to get them to and from the major cities," he said.

"Not everyone can drive, and not everyone can afford a plane ticket. A ticket in a sleeper carriage however gets you all the way to central station, and you get a night's accommodation on the train as well.

"As a community, we need to show the state government how much we value access to the sleeper carriages, and make our voice heard in Sydney."

The petition can be accessed online at megaphone.org.au/p/saveoursleepers.