Sydney commuters are being warned to expect more delays on their journey home after a enduring a morning peak hour breakdown of the system.
Sydney Trains are advising commuters to travel earlier or delaying their journey, with the morning delays still affecting afternoon services.
Sydney’s public transport network is strained after a train breakdown at Town Hall station prompted delays across the rail network.
"The incident follows the discovery of a damaged roof hatch on a Tangara train that was found to be off its hinges and close to touching the 1500 volt overhead wiring," Sydney Trains said on Twitter.
The T1 Western line, T2 Inner-west and Leppington line, T3 Bankstown, T8 Airport and T9 Northern line have also experienced flow-on delays.
T1 Sydney Trains took to Twitter to confirm crews had been working frantically to help clear the backlog.
A breakdown at Sydney's Town Hall station sent the city's train network into meltdown. Source: AAP
Despite the best efforts of technicians, Sydney's commuters remain unimpressed by the added frustration on the Friday morning trip to work.
Those travelling from Newtown in Sydney's inner-west were forced back out onto the street to find alternative arrangements.
Replacement buses have been deployed to ease the commuter chaos however travellers are reporting significant queues to access the backup services.
Transport authorities maintain commuters should allow plenty of extra travel time to reach their destination, with Sydney Trains staff now forced to defend the maintenance procedures of the organisation.
Ridesharing services have recorded a spike in demand with some commuters furious over the surge pricing usually enforced during conventional peak periods.
In one example, a base Uber fare from Sydney's CBD to Artarmon on the North Shore would cost stranded passengers $106.05 - a surge fee four or five times the regular cost.
Stranded passengers are outraged at surge pricing seen on ridesharing services. Source: Supplied
An Uber spokesperson has told SBS News the ridesharing operator is looking for ways to lift reliability and ensure demand is being met as best as possible.
“In cases of very high demand, fares may increase to help ensure those who need a ride can get one...Where known disruptions are planned, we work constructively with transport authorities so we can communicate in advance to drivers.”
The rail headaches are just the latest in a number of problems on Sydney's train network.
Metro passengers were left fuming on Tuesday when a mechanical problem disrupted services, bringing the much-hyped driverless vehicles to a halt for the third week in a row.
