The return daily rail service marked its fifth anniversary on Saturday with Bathurst MP Paul Toole on hand to celebrate the milestone with rail staff and passengers.

The Bathurst Bullet has grown in popularity since the inaugural Endeavour diesel train made its first journey to Sydney.

Mr Toole said the daily return service gives people in the Central West the opportunity to make a return trip to Sydney in a day.

“The Bathurst community is rightly very proud of the Bullet having campaigned so hard for improved rail links to Sydney,” he said.

“I am delighted to join the community to celebrate the success of the Bullet in making public transport an attractive option for people travelling between Bathurst and Sydney.

“More than 20,000 people boarded the Bullet last year to travel for business, visit family and attend medical appointments and we expect that number to grow as we continue to make improvements to the service.

“A new car park has been built at the station to accommodate Bathurst Bullet and other train commuters, which was finished in time for the service’s fifth birthday.

“Bullet customers have the convenience of using Opal ticketing for journeys between Bathurst and Sydney and earlier this year an Opal Top Up machine was installed so that customers can top up their Opal card or purchase an Opal Single Trip ticket.”

Mr Toole said from later this year when the new timetable is introduced on November 26, the Bullet will make an extra stop at Westmead making public transport more convenient for people accessing health services.