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Sydney trains
Image: Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

Some relief for Sydney commuters as industrial actions pauses

Sydneysiders will find their commutes easier on Friday after the Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) was ordered to suspend its protected industrial action.

On Thursday night, the Fair Work Commission issued an interim order to halt 350 work bans, which caused two days of delays and cancellations across the network.

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The order will also disallow planned action for trains to travel 23kph below the speed limit in 80kph zones.

The orders came after NSW Premier Chris Minns made an urgent application to end the actions and move to an arbitrated decision.

A hearing date has been set for next Wednesday and will likely continue to Thursday. The Fair Work Commission has a five-day timeframe to hear matters, and with the scheduled hearing date falling out of this, the interim orders were implemented.

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Some timing issues with services are expected on Friday, but Transport for NSW said disruptions shouldn’t be as bad as they were the days prior.

“The flow-on effects will be felt on the network today and over the coming days,” a spokesperson said.

“More than 50 temporary speed restrictions remain on the Sydney network due to a build-up of missed critical maintenance during the industrial campaign.

“This period has also seen a sharp increase in network defects and maintenance backlog that will take significant time and resources to recover.”

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