Transport for NSW (TfNSW) is aNew South Wales Government transport services and roadsagency established on 1 November 2011. The agency is a different entity to theNSW Department of Transport, which is adepartment of the state government of New South Wales, and the ultimate parent entity of Transport for NSW.[1]
The agency's function is to build transport infrastructure and manage transport services in New South Wales. Since absorbingRoads and Maritime Services (RMS) in December 2019,[3] the agency is also responsible for building and maintaining road infrastructure, managing the day-to-day compliance and safety for roads and waterways and vehicle and driving license registrations.
In March 1932, the first Department of Transport in New South Wales was formed by theLang Government.[5] Following thedismissal of the Lang government and the appointment of theStevens Government in May, in December 1932, the department was replaced by the Ministry of Transport, which was divided into three departments:[6][7]
Department of Road Transport and Tramways (until June 1952)[10]
In June 1952, the Department of Road Transport and Tramways was further split into:
Department of Transport and Highways, soon renamed the Department of Motor Transport (June 1952 – January 1989)[11]
Department of Government Tram and Omnibus Services, soon renamed Department of Government Transport (June 1952 – October 1972)[12]
In October 1972, the Department of Government Transport and Department of Railways were abolished and were replaced by thePublic Transport Commission, which continued to be part of the Ministry of Transport. The Ministry of Transport was later briefly known as Ministry of Transport and Highway between January 1975 and October 1978. In January 1989, the Department of Main Roads, Department of Motor Transport, and Traffic Authority of New South Wales merged to formRoads & Traffic Authority (RTA).[13]
As of March 2023[update], the Department of Transport continues to exist as a government department and the ultimate parent entity of Transport for NSW and its entities.[4]
Transport for NSW contracted theSydney ferry services to Harbour City Ferries in 2011, who started operations in 2012 and thenTransdev Sydney Ferries in 2019. Transport for NSW continues to own the ferry fleet and the Balmain shipyard through its entity "Sydney Ferries".[23] This entity is not to be confused with the branding of ferries in Sydney, which also uses the brand "Sydney Ferries".
Transport for NSW established the "MTS Holding Company" on 12 March 2012, and through the holding company, purchasedMetro Transport Sydney, the owner of theSydney Light Rail and theSydney Monorail, on 23 March 2012 for $19.8 million.[23] The company, light rail and the monorail also became under control of Transport for NSW and the government.[27] The Sydney Monorail was closed down on 1 July 2013, and on the same day, the Metro Light Rail brand was phased out as part of a broader rebranding and reorganisation of public transport services in New South Wales.[28] The light rail also became under direct ownership of Transport for NSW.[29][30] The process of shutting down Metro Transport Sydney and transferring assets to Transport for NSW was completed in September 2014 with the deregistration of MTS Holding Company.[31][32]
The operations and maintenance functions ofRailCorp were passed on to two newly formed government agencies,Sydney Trains andNSW Trains in July 2013, initially as subsidiaries of RailCorp. However, Sydney Trains and NSW Trains are not controlled entities of RailCorp, but are instead controlled by Transport for NSW.[33] The suburban services ofCityRail (also a part of RailCorp) were transferred to Sydney Trains, whileCountryLink (also a part of RailCorp) and the intercity services of CityRail were passed on to NSW Trains, trading asNSW TrainLink. As a result, CityRail and CountryLink were abolished.
In July 2017, Sydney Trains and NSW Trains became independent and standalone agencies under Transport for NSW, and ceased to be subsidiaries of RailCorp.[34][35] At the same time, the Residual Transport Corporation (RTC) was formed. RailCorp continued to exist as the railway asset owner until 1 July 2020, when it was converted into astate-owned corporation and renamedTransport Asset Holding Entity (TAHE).[36][37][35][38] The RTC will then own assets that are not suitable for TAHE ownership.[34]
In July 2018, the Sydney Metro Delivery Office, which was formed in 2011, was converted into a standaloneSydney Metro operating agency under Transport for NSW, similar to Sydney Trains and NSW Trains.[39]
After the2019 state election, the government announced they would be mergingRoads and Maritime Services (RMS) into Transport for NSW, to integrate roads and transport into a single agency.[40] Legislation to dissolve RMS and transfer its functions to Transport for NSW was passed in theNSW Parliament and grantedroyal assent in November 2019.[41][42] RMS was dissolved and merged into Transport for NSW on 1 December 2019.[3]
The authority develops regulations, policies and legislation to ensure that transport is delivered to a high standard, meets community needs, protects assets and public money, minimises environmental impact, and ensures the community is safe. The authority manages an annual multibillion-dollar transport budget and in partnership with the transport operating agencies manages more than $106 billion in property, plant and equipment assets. Funding is provided for rail, bus, ferry, light rail, roads and community transport services and related infrastructure. The authority also funds concession schemes such as the School Student Transport Scheme, the Private Vehicle Conveyance Scheme, the School Drive Subsidy and the Taxi Transport Subsidy Scheme.[46][47]
The NSW Department of Transport comprises the following entities:[50]
Transport Service of New South Wales
Transport for NSW and its divisions and entities
Transport Service of NSW is an agency created in November 2011, in charge of employing staff for Transport for NSW, which cannot directly employ staff, to undertake its functions. The Transport Service also directly employs staff for State Transit Authority (STA), as well as senior executives of Sydney Trains and NSW Trains.[51]
As of 2025[update], the entities of the Transport for NSW, as detailed inTransport Administration Act 1988, are:[52]
The branding for public transport in NSW, dubbed 'The Hop'Bus (B) and light rail (L) roundels
Transport for NSW directly manages most train, bus, ferry and light rail services in New South Wales. The authority manages the route design, timetabling and branding of these services and also provides passenger information via printed material, a telephone service and a website.[66] Operation of the services is contracted out to a mixture of other government-owned organisations and private enterprise.[67]
Transport for NSW public transport services are simply brandedTransport. The following sub-brands are used depending on the type of service:
Passengers made 765 million public transport journeys in the 2017-18 financial year.[68] Patronage on the Sydney rail network increased during this period–customer patronage grew by 10.5 per cent, while intercity patronage grew by 11 per cent.[69][70]
Transport for NSW provides a trip planner and transport service information on its customer service website,transportnsw.info, and via its 24-hour information line, 131 500.[66] These services, outsourced toSerco since July 2010, were previously known as the Transport InfoLine or simply 131500.[71] A parallelTeletype service for hearing and speech impaired passengers is available on 1800 637 500.
^Cosgriff, Stuart; Griffiths, Emily (5 July 2012)."Light rail strategy for Sydney".Clayton Utz Insights. Clayton Utz.Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved6 July 2012.
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