THE bus strike is over after more than a third of all Sydney government buses had been taken off the road, due to serious concerns about driver and passenger safety.

7.03PM: Union officials say they maintain their concerns, but have agreen to return buses to normal services.

“The Commsision made directions that we lift the ban,” Bus & Tram Division of the NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union Gary Way said.

“He also put strict conditons on the STA to do more investigations and keep us in the loop.”

“We will maintain our concerns but we accept that someone has to mediate in these matters.”

6.37PM: The Sydney bus strike is over, with RTBU officials agreeing the gas buses will resume services.

The decision was made in the Industrial Relations Commission this afternoon.

The Transport Management Centre said Sydney Buses services will be back to normal tonight, following snap industrial action by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union.

“Buses continue to run but there are gaps in some services, particularly around Kingsgrove,” a spokesman said.

“Passengers will be able to use their tickets to catch the train, Hillsbus, Westbus and Forest buses as well as Sydney Ferries services until 8pm.”

For the latest information, visit www.131500.com.au or call 131500.

5:46PM The Department of Transport says disruptions continue to some Sydney Buses services due to snap industrial action by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union.



It released an update at 5.39pm stating "Buses are still running but there are gaps in services. Route 333 buses from Circular Quay to Bondi will be all stops instead of express for the rest of this afternoon's peak. There are only limited Route 380 buses between North Bondi and Circular Quay."



Passengers are advised to allow plenty of extra travel time, expect delays as well as queues and crowded transport services.

Are you affected by the bus strike? Email us at news@dailytelegraph.com.au send photos to webphoto@dailytelegraph.com.au or call us on 92883771.



5:12PM Passengers can receive arrival times for all Sydney Buses services direct to their mobile when they SMS their bus stop number to 0488 TXT BUS (0488 898 287).



All people need to do is to send an SMS to 0488 TXT BUS (0488 898 287) quoting their bus stop number, which is a 6 or 7 digit number posted on the bus stop sign



5PM: RTBU officials have been hauled in front of the Industrial Relations Commission this afternoon.



Bus & Tram Division of the NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union Gary Way, and president Chris Preston are before the Commission right now.



The Commission could demand the buses return to operation immediately.



“Our view is that the buses are not safe, and should not be carrying passengers,” a union source told The Daily Telegraph.



4:35PM: Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian said tens of thousands of passengers will be stranded or inconvenienced.



“The State Transit Authority is seeking urgent action in the NSW Industrial Relations Commission to get the drivers to end their illegal action and get back on the road,” she said.



“The union cites a bus fire on July 29 as the reason for this illegal strike – but it’s ironic it comes during negotiations for a new pay deal,” Ms Berejiklian said.



“I am disgusted bus drivers are deserting their passengers – including school children – in the afternoon peak.”



She said yesterday talks between the executive of State Transit and the union broke down despite State Transit’s best efforts to come to an agreement.



Bus drivers have been offered a pay rise of up to 3.25 per cent, she said.



Minister Berejiklian said the Mercedes buses in question were safe. State Transit had been inspecting the buses on a weekly basis.



4:15PM: NSW's Transport Management Centre released the following statement:

Good afternoon,



Some Sydney Buses passengers are facing lengthy delays this afternoon due to snap industrial action by the Rail, Tram and Bus Union.



Buses will still be running but there are gaps in services.



Passengers can use their tickets to catch the train, Hillsbus, Westbus and Forest buses as well as Sydney Ferries services instead.



Extra trains will also be operating this afternoon to get people home from work and school.



Northern Beaches and Northern Sydney bus services and private bus services are not affected by the industrial action.



Passengers are advised to allow plenty of extra travel time this afternoon, expect delays as well as queues and crowded transport services.



For the latest information, visit www.131500.com.au or call 131500.



4PM: According to a message sent to @dailytelegraph from the Transport Infoline’s twitter feed, “There will be buses running everywhere and on all routes, but gaps in services”.



3:44PM: One bus driver, who did not want to be named, said management had told driver's their pay would be docked if they refused to drive a gas-powered bus.



"Management say if you don't take a gas bus out you could be docked so some of the guys are panicking," he said.

Drivers were only becoming aware of the situation when they arrived at the depot, he said.



"It's a bit dramatic," he said.



"I asked if there's a faulty valve and nobody can say.



"They sent down an engineer and he said the buses are all fine."



There was no way the STA could cover the loss of the gas buses, he said "They're getting rid of all the mouldy old buses," he said.



"They can't cover all these buses being off the road."



3:30PM A bus fire earlier this year that could have resulted in serious injuries to passengers has resulted in more than 700 gas-powered buses from circulation today, unions said.



A union investigation of an incident in July had uncovered “alarming evidence” that the lives of passengers and were being put at risk, president of the Bus & Tram Division of the NSW Rail, Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) Gary Way said.



“Today we have obtained evidence that a fire on board an STA bus in July was more than just a fire. In fact, video evidence conclusively shows that the back of the bus exploded.”



Concerned parents should call their child’s school, or commuters can visit www.131500.com.au or call 131 500 if they need help getting home tonight.



The Daily Telegraph reported in August an investigation was underway into the STA gas bus that caught fire on Beauchamp Road in Hillsdale on July 29, 2011.



Today buses will be grounded at five different depots across Sydney, causing likely chaos for commuters trying to get home.



The depots are Port Botany, Waverley, Kingsgrove, Leichhardt and Ryde.



“We understand the scale of the inconvenience (to communters), but once people see this footage I think they’ll understand,” said Mr Way.



He said there was serious concerns for passenger and driver safety.



“Despite repeated requests for information about the incident over the past two months, STA has failed to provide bus drivers with any detail about what happened,” Mr Way said.



“Given the shocking information that has come to light today, it appears that STA has been withholding the full extent of the dangers being faced by passengers. This situation is completely unacceptable. Drivers are concerned they may be driving around in ticking time bombs.”



Under the “extraordinary circumstances”, the only responsible course of action is to immediately take STA’s fleet of gas buses off the road until these serious safety concerns are addressed, he said.



“Obviously this will cause significant disruption to the travelling public - but drivers simply can not and will not put the lives of their passengers, including school children, at risk.



“Thankfully no-one was hurt in that incident. But if people had been sitting on the bus when it went up, they would not have stood a chance.”

Transport Minister Gladys Berejiklian told parliament that the RTBU had announced the snap strike because of “safety concerns” on the same day that they had been negotiating with the government over a wage increase for their new award.



She said the Opposition Leader John Robertson “should be picking up the phone to his union mates and saying ‘why are you doing this?, why are you calling this snap strike’.”

Transport NSW said Sydney Buses services will be disrupted during the afternoon peak.



Some buses will still be running, but may not be to timetable, said a spokesman.



“Parents are advised to ring their school about school bus runs,” he said.



“Schools will be contacted if routes that service their school will be altered or run more than 10 minutes late.”



Private bus services and northern beaches buses will be not affected.





MORE TO COME



Originally published as Sydney bus strike over