Transport for NSW, sometimes abbreviated to TfNSW, and pronounced as Transport for New South Wales, is an

agency Agency may refer to: Organizations * Institution, governmental or others ** Advertising agency or marketing agency, a service business dedicated to creating, planning and handling advertising for its clients ** Employment agency, a business that ...

of the

New South Wales Government The Government of New South Wales, also known as the NSW Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of New South Wales. It is currently held by a coalition of the Liberal Party and the National Party. The Governmen ...

established on 1 November 2011, and is the leading transport and roads agency in

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. The agency is a different entity to the New South Wales Department of Transport, a

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

of the New South Wales Government and the ultimate parent entity of Transport for NSW. The agency's function since its creation is to build transport infrastructure and manage transport services in New South Wales. Since absorbing

Roads & Maritime Services A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

(RMS) in December 2019, 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. The authority reports to the New South Wales

Minister for Transport A ministry of transport or transportation is a ministry responsible for transportation within a country. It usually is administered by the ''minister for transport''. The term is also sometimes applied to the departments or other government ag ...

, Minister for Metropolitan Roads, Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, Minister for Infrastructure, Minister for Cities and Minister for Active Transport. Ultimately the ministers are responsible to the

Parliament of New South Wales The Parliament of New South Wales is a bicameral legislature in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), consisting of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly (lower house) and the New South Wales Legislative Council (upper house). Eac ...

History

Predecessor transport departments

Ministry of Transport (1932–1990)

In March 1932, the first Department of Transport in New South Wales was formed by the Lang Government. Following the dismissal of the Lang government and the appointment of the Stevens Government in May, in December 1932, the department was replaced by the Ministry of Transport, which was divided into three departments: * Department of Railways (until October 1972) * Department of Main Roads (until January 1989) – spun out from Ministry of Transport in March 1956 *Department of Road Transport and Tramways (until June 1952) 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) *Department of Government Tram and Omnibus Services, soon renamed Department of Government Transport (June 1952 – October 1972) In October 1972, the Department of Government Transport and Department of Railways were abolished and were replaced by the

Public Transport Commission The Public Transport Commission (PTC) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for the provision of rail, bus and ferry services in New South Wales, Australia from October 1972 until June 1980. Upon dissolution, responsib ...

, 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 form Roads and Traffic Authority of New South Wales (RTA).

Subsequent departments (1990–2011)

In January 1990, the Ministry of Transport was abolished and replaced by a new Department of Transport and its successors: *Department of Transport (January 1990 – April 2003) – briefly branded as Transport NSW between 2001 and April 2003 *Transport Co-Ordination Authority (April 2003 – July 2003) – interim *Ministry of Transport (July 2003 – July 2009) *Department of Transport and Infrastructure (July 2009 – July 2010) – branded as NSW Transport and Infrastructure (NSWTI) *Transport NSW (July 2010 – April 2011)

Creation of Transport for NSW

After winning the 2011 state election, the new Liberal-Nationals

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

under

Barry O'Farrell Barry Robert O'Farrell (born 24 May 1959) is a former Australian politician who has been Australia's High Commissioner to India and non-resident Ambassador to Bhutan since May 2020. O'Farrell was the 43rd Premier of New South Wales and Minis ...

renamed the transport department from Transport NSW back to Department of Transport. Later that year, in November 2011, the Transport for NSW was formed as a government agency and subsumed the

Transport Construction Authority The Transport Construction Authority (TCA), formerly Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation (TIDC) prior to July 2010, was an agency of the Government of New South Wales that was responsible for new railway projects in the city of Sydn ...

and the Country Rail Infrastructure Authority, and took over the planning and coordination functions of

RailCorp Rail Corporation New South Wales (RailCorp) was an agency of the State of New South Wales, Australia established under the ''Transport Administration Act 1988'' in 2004. It was a division under the control of Transport for NSW since the latter' ...

, the

State Transit Authority The State Transit Authority of New South Wales, also referred to as State Transit, was an agency of the Government of New South Wales operating bus services in Sydney. Superseding the Urban Transit Authority in 1989, it was also responsible for ...

and

from the Department of Transport. It also absorbed the functions, assets and/or liabilities of

Sydney Metro Authority Sydney Metro was a proposed rapid transit railway network in Sydney, intended to connect the central business district (CBD) with the inner and outer city suburbs Rouse Hill, Westmead, Malabar and lower North Shore. Initially proposed in 200 ...

Public Transport Ticketing Corporation Public transport ticketing in New South Wales, Australia operated using magnetic-stripe technology between 1989 and 2016. This ticketing system, known variously as the Automated fare collection system, STATS and, from 2010, MyZone, was progressiv ...

as well as some functions from the NSW Department of Planning & Infrastructure. The entities that were under Transport for NSW upon its creation, as underlined in the ''Transport Legislation Amendment Act 2011'', were: *

Roads and Maritime Services ] Roads and Maritime Services (also known as Roads & Maritime Services) was an Statutory authority, agency of the New South Wales Government responsible for building and maintaining road infrastructure and managing the day-to-day compliance an ...

Sydney Ferries Sydney Ferries is the public transport ferry network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales. Services operate on Sydney Harbour and the connecting Parramatta River. The network is controlled by the New South Wales Government's transport a ...

* Rail Corporation of New South Wales (

) The Department of Transport continues to exist as a government department and the ultimate parent entity of Transport for NSW and its entities or divisions.Transport for NSW 2016-17 Annual Report page 237
Transport for NSW, retrieved 18 January 2018

Sydney Ferries

Transport for NSW contracted the Sydney ferry services to Harbour City Ferries in 2011, who started operations in 2012 and then

Transdev Sydney Ferries Transdev Sydney Ferries, formerly Harbour City Ferries, is a subsidiary of Transdev Australasia, and is the operator of ferry services in the Sydney Ferries network since July 2012. It currently operates the ferry network under a contract until ...

in 2019. Transport for NSW continues to own the ferry fleet and the Balmain shipyard through its entity "Sydney Ferries". This entity is not to be confused with the branding of ferries in Sydney, which also uses the brand "Sydney Ferries".

Purchase of Sydney Light Rail and Sydney Monorail

Transport for NSW established the "MTS Holding Company" on 12 March 2012, and through the holding company, purchased

Metro Transport Sydney Metro Transport Sydney (MTS) was the owner of the now-demolished Sydney Monorail and the former owner of the Inner West Light Rail in Sydney, New South Wales. Established in 2001, it replaced the Sydney Light Rail Company (SLRC), the previous ...

, the owner of the Sydney Light Rail and the

Sydney Monorail The Sydney Monorail (originally TNT Harbourlink and later Metro Monorail) was a single-loop monorail in Sydney, Australia, that connected Darling Harbour, Chinatown and the Sydney central business and shopping districts. It opened in July 1988 ...

, on 23 March 2012 for $19.8 million. The company, light rail and the monorail also became under control of Transport for NSW and the government. 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. The light rail also became under direct ownership of Transport for NSW. 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.

New railway agencies

Operation and maintenance functions of

were passed on to two newly-formed government agencies,

Sydney Trains Sydney Trains is the operator of the suburban passenger rail network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The network is a hybrid urban- suburban rail system with a central underground core that covers over of track and 170 ...

and NSW 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. The suburban services of

CityRail CityRail was a passenger railway brand operated by the State Rail Authority from 1989 to 2003 and by RailCorp from 2003 to 2013 with services in and around Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong, the three largest cities in New South Wales, Australia ...

(also a part of RailCorp) were transferred to Sydney Trains, while

CountryLink CountryLink was a passenger rail and road service brand that operated in regional areas New South Wales, Canberra, Brisbane and Melbourne. Originally created as a business unit (or sub-brand) of the State Rail Authority of New South Wales, it l ...

(also a part of RailCorp) and the intercity services of CityRail were passed on to NSW Trains, trading as

NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, along with limited interstate services into Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Its primary interc ...

. 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. 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 a

state-owned corporation A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the governmen ...

and renamed

Transport Asset Holding Entity Transport Asset Holding Entity of New South Wales (TAHE) is a state-owned corporation of the New South Wales Government in New South Wales, Australia, established under the ''Transport Administration Act 1988''. It was converted and renamed fro ...

(TAHE). The RTC will then own assets that are not suitable for TAHE ownership. In July 2018, the Sydney Metro Delivery Office, which was formed in 2011, was converted into a standalone

Sydney Metro The Sydney Metro is a fully automated rapid transit system serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Currently consisting of one line that opened on 26 May 2019, it runs from Tallawong to Chatswood and consists of 13 stations ...

operating agency under Transport for NSW, similar to Sydney Trains and NSW Trains.

Amalgamation of Transport and Road agencies

After the 2019 state election, the government announced they would be merging

(RMS) into Transport for NSW, to integrate roads and transport into a single agency. Legislation to dissolve RMS and transfer its functions to Transport for NSW was passed in the

NSW Parliament The Parliament of New South Wales is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature in the Australian States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales (NSW), consisting of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly (lower house) and the New S ...

and granted

royal assent Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...

in November 2019. RMS was dissolved and merged into Transport for NSW on 1 December 2019.

Parklands

On 1 April 2022, the Greater Sydney Parklands Trust was transferred from the Department of Planning and Environment (DPE) to Transport for NSW. The trust comprised

Centennial Parklands Centennial Parklands is the name given to a group of three urban parklands located in the eastern suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Comprising approximately , the lands encompass Centennial Park, Moore Park and Queen's Park. T ...

(including Moore Park and Queens Park),

Western Sydney Parklands The Western Sydney Parklands is an urban park system and a nature reserve located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The NSW government has spent around $400 million for the park. The park is governed by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife ...

, Parramatta Park,

Callan Park Callan Park, with the heritage listed name Callan Park Conservation Area & Buildings, is a heritage listed site in Lilyfield, a suburb in the Inner West Council in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Calla ...

and Fernhill Estate, and their individual park trusts. The

Luna Park Luna Park is a name shared by dozens of currently operating and defunct amusement parks. They are named after, and partly based on, the first Luna Park, which opened in 1903 during the heyday of large Coney Island parks. Luna parks are small-sc ...

Reserve Trust, Place Management NSW and the Royal Botanic Gardens and

Domain Domain may refer to: Mathematics *Domain of a function, the set of input values for which the (total) function is defined **Domain of definition of a partial function **Natural domain of a partial function **Domain of holomorphy of a function * Do ...

Trust and Smart Places Strategy were also transferred from DPE to Transport for NSW.

Purpose

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 A$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 and the Taxi Transport Subsidy Scheme.

Organisational structure

Sydney Trains A Set at Ashfield (cropped)

The authority was initially created as an integrated transport authority with six divisions, each headed by a deputy director general: * Customer experience – to ensure journeys are as simple and seamless as possible; * Planning and programs – to consolidate planning for all modes and develop a comprehensive transport masterplan; * Transport services – to ensure transport services cost-effectively meet the current and future needs of customers; * Transport projects – to manage major projects; * Freight and regional development – to coordinate freight services and facilities, with particular focus on regional NSW; and * Policy and regulation – to develop and oversight policies and laws pertaining to transport across the state , Transport for NSW is structured as follows: *Operational divisions **Greater Sydney **Regional **Infrastructure and Place **Safety Environment and Regulation **Customer Strategy and Technology *Support divisions **Office of the Secretary **Corporate Services **People and Culture *Project delivery offices **Sydney Light Rail **Parramatta Light Rail **Newcastle Light Rail

Entities

The NSW Department of Transport comprises the following entities: * 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. , the entities of Transport for NSW, as detailed in ''Transport Administration Act 1988'', are: *

(STA) *

* NSW Trains * Residual Transport Corporation (RTC) – created in July 2017 *

authority – created in July 2018 Out of these, STA, Sydney Trains, Sydney Metro authority, and NSW Trains are government transport agencies.Our Organisation
Transport for NSW, retrieved 6 July 2019

Departmental leadership

The following individuals have served as

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

of Transport for NSW, or any precedent titles: The Secretary of Transport for NSW is responsible to the Ministers (below).

Ministers

The following ministers are responsible for administering the Transport

cluster may refer to: Science and technology Astronomy * Cluster (spacecraft), constellation of four European Space Agency spacecraft * Asteroid cluster, a small asteroid family * Cluster II (spacecraft), a European Space Agency mission to study t ...

: *

, currently

The Honourable ''The Honourable'' (British English) or ''The Honorable'' (American English; see spelling differences) (abbreviation: ''Hon.'', ''Hon'ble'', or variations) is an honorific style that is used as a prefix before the names or titles of certain ...

David Elliott * Minister for Metropolitan Roads, currently The Hon. Natalie Ward * Minister for Regional Transport and Roads, currently The Hon.

Sam Farraway Samuel Jacob Farraway (born 1986) is an Australian politician. Farraway has served as the Minister for Regional Transport and Roads in the Perrottet ministry since December 2021. He has been a National member of the New South Wales Legislative ...

* Minister for Infrastructure, Minister for Cities, Minister for Active Transport, currently The Hon.

Rob Stokes Robert Gordon Stokes (born 17 January 1975) is an Australian politician. Stokes is the New South Wales Minister for Infrastructure, the Minister for Cities, and the Minister for Active Transport in the Perrottet ministry since 21 December 20 ...

. Ultimately, the Ministers are responsible to the

Public transport services

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. Operation of the services is contracted out to a mixture of other government-owned organisations and private enterprise. Transport for NSW public transport services are simply branded ''Transport''. The following sub-brands are used depending on the type of service: *

– rapid transit services in Sydney, with trains every 4–10 minutes *

– suburban train services in Sydney *

– medium and long distance train and coach services throughout the state and extending interstate into

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (commonly abbreviated as ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) until 1938, is a landlocked federal territory of Australia containing the national capital Canberra and some surrounding townships. ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

and

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

* Buses – bus services in

Greater Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountains ...

, Blue Mountains, Central Coast and Wollongong *

– ferry services in Sydney * Sydney Light Rail – light rail services in Sydney *

Newcastle Transport Newcastle Transport is a public transport operator in Newcastle, New South Wales. A subsidiary of Keolis Downer, it operates bus, Stockton ferry service, ferry and Newcastle Light Rail, light rail services under contract to Transport for NSW. Hi ...

– bus, ferry and light rail services in Newcastle Passengers made 765 million public transport journeys in the 2017-18 financial year. 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.

Transport Info

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, 131500. These services, outsourced to

Serco Serco Group plc is a British company with headquarters based in Hook, Hampshire, England. Serco primarily derives income as a contractor for the provision of government services, most prominently in the sectors of health, transport, justice, i ...

since July 2010, were previously known as the Transport InfoLine or simply 131500.Integrated Transport and Information Services
Serco Asia Pacific A parallel Teletype service for hearing and speech impaired passengers is available on 1800 637 500.

Infrastructure

Public transport projects

Current

Completed

Roads

Some of the following key road building projects were inherited from

in December 2019.

Current

Completed

References

External links

Transport for NSW
(main website)
Roads and Waterways – Transport for NSW

transportnsw.info
(public transport website) {{Authority control Government agencies established in 2011

Transport Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, an ...

Government departments of New South Wales Intermodal transport authorities in Australia Transport in New South Wales 2011 establishments in Australia State departments of transport of Australia