‘Metro mania’: Tens of thousands forecast to ride on final stage on opening day

October 29, 2026 — 5:00amTens of thousands of passengers are expected to ride on the final stage of Sydney’s $30 billion metro line when it opens on Friday, prompting authorities to make extra contingency plans to handle crowds.The first passenger service along the M1 line’s south-west section will depart at 4.31am on Friday from Bankstown station. It will be operated by the same train – known as Set 29 – that made the first journey along the M1’s city section between Sydenham and Chatswood in August 2024.Metro Southwest project director Alia Karaman at Campsie station ahead of the opening on Friday. Wolter PeetersSydney Metro is forecasting about 18,000 passengers to travel on the south-west section between Bankstown and Sydenham during the morning peak hour from 8am to 9am on Friday.Metro Southwest project director Alia Karaman said she would not be surprised if the turnout on Friday was higher than the agency’s forecasts. “I’m always overwhelmed and surprised by the level of metro mania in Sydney,” she said.Karaman said extra staff were rostered on for Friday and the following days, while additional technical support was in place for at least the next two weeks.“Any sort of element that could be overwhelmed, we are giving it a hyper-care arrangement to ensure a quicker response,” she said.A driverless metro train passes through Campsie station on Wednesday.Wolter PeetersPink replacement buses will continue running along the south-west corridor for the first three days of metro services as a back-up.Karaman, who grew up in the Bankstown area, said one of the greatest risks on opening day would be human behaviour, which could be difficult to predict.“Anything could happen when you add that to the mix … but that’s [the case] in any standard railway,” she said.Train enthusiasts and south-west residents are expected to turn out in force in the early hours of the morning to be among the first passengers on trains running along the final stretch.Passengers will soon be filing through electronic ticketing gates at Campsie station.Wolter PeetersAhead of the opening, the Set-29 train that will make the first service will undergo a deep clean and full mechanical check on Thursday.Transport Minister John Graham said the people of south-west Sydney were about to be rewarded for the patience they had shown over the past two years.“Tomorrow morning, your new metro hits the track,” he said. “There is an enormous amount of work that goes into preparing a new metro line for passengers, right down to the smallest details.”Under the original plans of the previous Coalition government last decade, the south-west section was meant to open in 2024 at the same time as the rest of the second stage between Chatswood and Sydenham.A decision was made about four years ago to open the south-west section later amid escalating construction costs and challenges turning a more than century-old rail line into one for driverless trains.The opening of the final stretch will be a relief for commuters who have endured trips on pink replacement buses for the past two years while the T3 heavy rail line was converted to handle fully autonomous metro trains.In mid-2018, the then-Coalition government told commuters the T3 line would need to be closed for three to six months before the metro conversion was completed. Even before the T3 was closed in September 2024, the Minns government said the shutdown might last longer than its earlier estimates of 12 months.The final 13-kilometre south-west section will extend the M1 line to 66 kilometres of track between Tallawong and Bankstown via the central city.Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.From our partners