‘Metro mania’: Diehards book spot in history on board 4.31am train along Southwest Metro

October 30, 2026 — 6:38am

The first of the early risers started arriving at 1am to book their place in history.

With the first train departing Bankstown station at 4.31am, the diehards were not going to miss the inaugural passenger service along the final section of Sydney’s $30 billion M1 metro rail line.

Among them was self-confessed trainspotter Ash Williamson, who travelled from Melbourne for the big day in Sydney, and arrived at Bankstown station at 1am on Friday to secure his spot on the first service.

“This is a very important moment in Australian history. This is the first full opening of Australia’s first driverless train,” he said.

By the time train Set 29 had turned up at Bankstown at 4.04am, more than 1000 people lined the platform ready to board the first service.

Once everyone had squeezed on board, the carriages were filled with a festive atmosphere as train enthusiasts, politicians including Transport Minister John Graham, senior public servants and those who had played an integral part of its construction celebrated the first ride.

Graham said it was “great to get to this moment” and the turnout in the early hours showed how excited the community was about the opening of the line through the southwest.

“It is a case of metro mania. I think people realised with the [city-section of the M1 line] what was possible,” he said. “It’s been a long wait – it’s a big, big moment in Sydney.”

Among the diehards on board was Atticus Sparrow from Parramatta, who joined three friends for the first service. They bought a cake for the “metro’s birthday”.

“It’s being part of history. It’s taken forever and your being part of that,” Sparrow said.

Curtis Tarazi from Belmore said the opening was a big deal for Sydney’s southwest because of the closure of the line between Sydenham and Bankstown for the last two years.

“It’s been so hard to get anywhere with public transport, and finally, we have something with high services and frequency,” Tarazi said.

Earlier, Labor’s Bankstown MP Jihad Dib cut the ribbon for the Southwest Metro project at the entrance to the station, joined by fellow MPs Jo Haylen and Sophie Cotsis about 40 minutes before the first train departed.

In a sentimental touch, the inaugural service was operated by the train Set 29, the same one that made the first journey carrying passengers along the city section of the line between Sydenham and Chatswood in August 2024 when it was opened.

Among those on board the train as it whisked its way towards Sydenham and the CBD was Sydney Metro chief executive Camilla Drover, Metro Southwest project director Alia Karaman, Transport for NSW secretary Josh Murray and the agency’s coordinator-general Howard Collins.

Murray said the turnout early on Friday morning was greater than the number who gathered for the opening of the city-section of the M1 line in August 2024.

“We had huge numbers at Sydenham, and we all thought that was a bit of a turnout. Here we are, even earlier, about an hour earlier in the morning and there’s much more community outpouring,” he said.

“You can see the people of the southwest have been wanting to join this as well, not just our transport and metro community.”

The final 13-kilometre section of the three-stage M1 metro project has been marked by long delays and cost blowouts due to the challenges converting a 130-year-old heavy rail line into one that could handle driverless trains.

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