THE timetable for the Bathurst Bullet daily return passenger rail service to Sydney is in the process of being finalised, with the maiden journey expected to take place on October 21.
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Although the train’s official timetable is not expected to be made public for several weeks, it turns out that Penrith is a big mover as a preferred port of call.
Likely other pick-up and drop-off destinations include Lithgow, Mt Victoria, Springwood and Central, while it is believed there will be drop-off only stops on the trip to Central at Penrith, Parramatta and Strathfield.
The return leg is expected to include pick-up only stops at Strathfield, Parramatta and Penrith before moving through to Springwood, Mount Victoria, Lithgow and Bathurst.
It is also envisaged the train would depart Bathurst at 5.40am and arrive at Central at 9.25am. The return journey would leave Central at 5.55pm and pull into Bathurst at 9.30pm.
When the refurbished Endeavour carriages pull out of Bathurst Railway Station, the first passengers to board the train will be John Hollis and Paul Toole.
Both men have been key drivers in the process to deliver the city its first daily return passenger service to the big smoke.
Members of Rail Action Bathurst (RAB) met with the Bathurst MP this week as part of the consultation process to ensure the train stops at the stations people want.
Mr Hollis said yesterday RAB will be leaving it to CityRail to come up with the right formula for the service’s timetable.
“At this stage nothing is official and we’re only talking about the timetable being at a draft stage, but Penrith is being viewed as an important stop,” he said.
“There will be two carriages, each capable of holding 95 passengers. Our main focus was to get the daily return service into Sydney and we’ll be leaving the rest to CityRail to work out.
“Personally, this is the culmination of seven years’ work and it’s pretty exciting to know that it’s about to pay off.
“I always thought it was possible, but thanks to the hard work of Mr Toole as the new member it’s now set to become a reality.
“When that first train pulls out of Bathurst I want to be there with Mr Toole in the driver’s seat.”
Mr Toole said yesterday he’s been overwhelmed with community support for the service, including getting the backing of the Bathurst Business Chamber.
“I have had numerous requests since this was made public as to where the train should stop,” he said.
“However, people have to realise the service has to fit in with the entire CityRail time table.
“Obviously not everyone will get the stops they want, but there is always the option of changing trains to a different service to achieve this goal.
“You won’t be able to pre-book tickets, but you can rest assured John and I will be first in line on this momentous occasion.”