“These negotiations and this expenditure are in the best interest of the communities. Am I happy to spend millions of dollars modifying what the security regulator has said? [are] perfectly good trains? Absolutely not, ”he said.
“But the cost of this industrial action, the cost to the NSW economy, the inconvenience to travelers has to be taken into account when it comes to running public transport.”
The setback comes just two months after Treasurer Matt Kean and Employee Relations Minister Damien Tudehope vowed that the government would not yield to calls from unions for changes, which they said were unreasonable and which would cost $ 1 billion.
Kean said the government had drawn “a line in the sand” and would not consider modifying the fleet, which he called “scandalous” demand.
While the physical alterations are expected to cost more than $ 260 million, NSW Transport Secretary Rob Sharp warned there would be additional costs, including those associated with prolonged storage.
Elliott said that if the union accepted the new agreement, modification work could begin in August, with train tests scheduled “in a few months.”
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Opposition transportation spokeswoman Jo Haylen said the government had spent years and millions of dollars to make the right decision.
“These trains have cost $ 30 million a month to store them in cutlery here and abroad, they are years behind schedule and as the government puts politics ahead of passengers, we are still months away from seeing them at ways, ”he said.
“It has taken too long to fix this mess because, for months, the Prime Minister and his government have focused on doing politics with our train network instead of making sure passengers can get to work. in time”.
NSW Union Under-Secretary Thomas Costa said all parties would wait until they were shown all the details of the government’s proposal before making a decision.
“Once we see the details of their offer in writing, we will talk to our members about what this means for more industrial action and whether we should withdraw or continue it,” he said.
“While they have approved the changes to the NIF, and we welcome it, the changes should be the responsibility of the government, not our staff.”
He said there were still some outstanding issues that the government had not addressed, including 20 days of paid leave for domestic violence.
The state transportation agency has warned that industrial actions planned by railroad workers on Thursday and Friday are likely to reduce rush hour services by up to 75 percent.
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