No City Circle Trains Friday 23 to Sunday 25 October 2026: Central to Wynyard Closed, Replacement Buses by Line (Sydney, NSW)

This has now finished. The details below applied up to Sunday 25 October 2026 and are kept as a record.

From 10:40pm on Friday 23 October 2026, trains do not run on the City Circle or between Central and Wynyard, and most Sydney Trains lines change as a result, according to Transport for NSW. For travel in the City, Transport for NSW says to use T4 Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra Line trains, metro, light rail, local buses or walk.

The trackwork covers Friday 23 to Sunday 25 October. This guide sorts the changes by line and by day, using the Transport for NSW trackwork notice and the individual alert pages behind it, all read on Tuesday 20 October. Times are Sydney time. Check the Trip Planner before you travel, because Transport for NSW updates these pages.

What can I use instead of the City Circle?

Transport for NSW lists these ways to get around the City: T4 Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra Line trains, Sydney Metro, light rail, local buses, or walking. L2 and L3 light rail services run between Central and Circular Quay. The agency also says to download the Opal Travel app for disruption notifications and to use the Trip Planner for real-time information.

Most replacement buses accept Opal. Tap on and off with a valid Opal or contactless card, and fines apply without a valid ticket. Bikes are not allowed on replacement buses. Transport for NSW says services may be delayed or cancelled due to driver shortages.

What changes on Friday night, 23 October?

Line	From	What Transport for NSW says
T2 and T3 Inner West	10:20pm	Buses replace Inner West trains between Strathfield and Central. The last Inner West train to Homebush leaves Central at 10:10pm, and the last to Central leaves Homebush at 10:10pm. T2 trains run to a changed timetable between Leppington and Olympic Park via Granville; T3 trains run between Liverpool and Lidcombe only. Change at Lidcombe.
City Circle	10:40pm	Trains do not run on the City Circle, or between Central and Wynyard.
T8 Airport & South	10:40pm	Trains via the Airport start and end at Central. T8 trains do not run between Sydenham and the City, and T4 trains run between Sydenham and Bondi Junction with extra stops at St Peters and Erskineville.
T1 Western	10:50pm	Trains run to a changed timetable between Penrith and Central, platforms 1-14 only, making extra stops at Homebush, Flemington and Burwood.
T9 Northern	10:50pm	Trains run to a changed timetable between Hornsby and Central, platforms 1-14 only.
T1 North Shore	11pm	Trains run between Berowra and Wynyard only. Use metro between Chatswood and the City, or change at Wynyard for light rail or local buses.

What changes on Saturday and Sunday?

Line	What Transport for NSW says
T1 North Shore	Trains run between Hornsby and Wynyard only, to a changed timetable. Daily from 7:30am to 8pm, buses replace trains between Hornsby and Gordon (bus route 45T1). The last train to Hornsby leaves Wynyard at 6:53am and arrives at 7:43am; the first train after the trackwork leaves Wynyard at 7:43pm and arrives at 8:35pm. In the other direction, the last train to Wynyard leaves Hornsby at 7:20am and arrives at 8:06am; the first after the trackwork leaves Hornsby at 8:10pm and arrives at 8:56pm.
T1 Western	Changed timetable and stopping pattern between Richmond and Liverpool (you may need to change at Parramatta), and between Penrith and Central, platforms 1-14, with extra stops at Homebush, Flemington and Burwood. The last trains between Penrith and Central leave Central at 11:26pm (arriving Penrith 12:36am) and Penrith at 10:45pm (arriving Central 11:56pm).
T2 Leppington & Inner West	Buses replace Inner West trains between Strathfield and Central (routes 44T2 and 47T2); express trains continue to run. Trains run between Leppington and Olympic Park via Granville, and T1 Western trains run between Lidcombe and Central.
T3 Liverpool & Inner West	Buses replace Inner West trains between Strathfield and Central. Trains run between Liverpool and Bankstown, and buses replace T6 trains between Bankstown and Lidcombe.
T6 Lidcombe & Bankstown	Buses replace trains between Bankstown and Lidcombe (routes 8T6 and 8AT6). Trains run between Liverpool and Bankstown, and between Lidcombe and the City.
T8 Airport & South	Most trains run to a changed timetable between Macarthur and Sydenham, or between Revesby and Central via the Airport. Change at Revesby for trains to Central via the Airport, or at Sydenham for metro to the City or T4 trains towards Bondi Junction. Early morning and late-night trains run between Macarthur and Central via the Airport.
T9 Northern	Changed timetable and stopping pattern between Berowra and Central, platforms 1-14, and between Hornsby and Epping. Use metro between Epping and the City.
T4 Eastern Suburbs & Illawarra	Runs between Sydenham and Bondi Junction with extra stops at St Peters and Erskineville, as part of the City alternative.
South Coast	Trains run between South Coast Line stations and Sydenham only. Change at Sydenham for T4 trains or metro.

Which trains does Olympic Park lose on Saturday night?

From 11:40pm Saturday to 5:30am Sunday, Transport for NSW says buses replace all trains between Olympic Park and Central on the T1 Western, T2, T3, T6 and T7 lines. On the T9 Northern Line, the main notice says buses replace trains between Olympic Park and Central, while the T9 alert page says Strathfield and Central, so check the Trip Planner for your stop. Replacement buses do not leave from Lidcombe. The replacement bus routes are 42T7 (Olympic Park, Strathfield, Central) and 43T7 (Olympic Park, Flemington, Homebush, Strathfield, Central).

T1 Western trains run between Penrith and Olympic Park only in those hours, and T2 trains run between Leppington and Olympic Park, where you change. Sunday morning also affects intercity services:

• Blue Mountains Line: from 12:40am to 6am Sunday, most trains run between Blue Mountains Line stations and Blacktown only. Change at Blacktown. The 4:24am Central to Lithgow and 5:24am Central to Mount Victoria services start from Parramatta.
• Central Coast & Newcastle Line: from 12:40am to 6am Sunday, buses replace trains between Strathfield and Central, according to the main notice.
• Southern Highlands Line: on Saturday from 4:40am to 5:30pm, buses replace trains between Goulburn, Moss Vale and Campbelltown (routes 5SH, 6SH and 9SH).

Do light rail and metro run normally?

Transport for NSW points to metro and light rail as alternatives, and says L2 and L3 light rail services run between Central and Circular Quay. The Royal Randwick race day on Saturday 24 October falls in the same weekend, and the agency says additional L2 and L3 services run between Circular Quay and Randwick or Juniors Kingsford from 7am to 7pm that day because of the City Circle trackwork.

How can I plan around it?

• The Trip Planner provides real-time information on delays, trackwork and disruptions.
• The weekend trackwork map gives an overview of planned trackwork across the network.
• You can subscribe to email alerts for planned trackwork on your line or across the network.
• The Opal Travel app lets you set up notifications about disruptions for your regular trips.

Sources

• Transport for NSW — Planned trackwork from Friday 23 to Sunday 25 October (notice dated 19 October 2026; read 20 October 2026)
• Transport for NSW — City Circle alert and the line alert pages linked from the notice (T1, T2, T3, T6, T7, T8, T9, Blue Mountains, Central Coast & Newcastle, South Coast and Southern Highlands lines)
• Transport for NSW — Weekend trackwork map

Featured image: Train at Wynyard railway station, platforms 3 and 4 (photo: Kgbo / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with Transport for NSW or Sydney Trains. Timetables can change; check the official pages above and the Trip Planner before you travel.