Forget the buses - weekend trackwork could be at an end

The weekend work was to deal with the backlog of repair jobs on the South Coast line, which formed part of an approach across the rail network.

Following the release of the Walsh Report, which found the rail network "fragile" and in desperate need of attention, Transport Minister Jo Haylin launched a $97 million rail repair plan covering 3700 repairs, upgrades and refurbishments and around 100 worksites and hundreds of workers every weekend.

Including the Illawarra, where the South Coast line has been closed several times between Thirroul and Waterfall in recent years to repair damage caused by heavy rain.

"If you use trains on weekends, I'm sorry but you're going to find yourself on buses - a lot," Ms Haylen said at the time.

Now, six months into the repair plan, the maintenance teams working on the line between Waterfall and Bomaderry have totally cleared out the backlog.

That means an expected drop in weekend trackwork pushing people onto buses - though it is likely regular maintenance will still need to occur.

According to Transport for NSW, in the first six months, South Coast rail crews fixed more than 1800 defects, which lead to the removal of a temporary speed restriction for trains and completed 15,000 inspections at various points on the line.

"On the South Coast line, Sydney Trains are installing new axle counters in Coalcliff tunnel to reduce delays during wet weather," a Transport for NSW spokesman said.

"The South Coast line will also benefit from the defect removal and backlog reductions obtained in the Central, Sutherland and Waterfall, areas due to less interruptions and failures.

"Sydney Trains has also completed a significant amount of track grinding, ballast cleaning and track defect removals. Work is also under way to get drainage work and embankment slip management projects complete on the South Coast to improve reliability."