Rail officials have approached the Independent Transport Safety and Reliability Regulator (ITSRR) in an attempt to relax its standards for overcrowded services. Even the existing 5 per cent target fails to adequately represent just how severe crowding is on CityRail's trains, according to the review conducted separately by the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) last month.

"As crowding on trains varies significantly across the lines of the network, IPART considers this network-wide measure provides little insight," the tribunal said in its review of CityRail's accountability standards. "Passengers are likely to view CityRail's reported performance against this indicator with scepticism if it bears little relationship to their own experience." If the regulator endorses the new measure, which equates to one in six trains being overcrowded, CityRail will immediately meet its publicly reported target in what is its worst-performing category of customer service.

In 2005, CityRail relaxed its definition of an on-time train to one that arrives at a station within five minutes of its schedule. Overcrowding on the rail system has become the biggest political problem of the state's transport portfolio, as thousands of people each week are left behind on platforms or have trouble getting off the train before the doors close.

IPART says the network-wide measurement is inadequate, let alone the proposal to relax it by a further 12 per cent: "For example, in 2007, average load factors on the Western, Main North and Illawarra lines were 130 per cent. Maximum load factors on these lines were 180, 160 and 170 per cent respectively." The average train in the morning peak on the Western Line carries 130 per cent of seating capacity. Almost half of services during the busiest 60 minutes of the peak carried in excess of crush load. The tribunal has urged the Government to report crowding on a line-by-line basis: "IPART considers that the service contract should set a target for the percentage of trains in peak periods with a load factor above 135 per cent for each train line."

Transport Minister David Campbell was considering the recommendation as a new service contract was drafted for CityRail. "Of course having appropriate targets is important but I'm focused on improving services for commuters and crowding is an issue for them," he said.

"But crowding issues are caused by increased patronage, and that among other things, shows confidence in our rail network is improving." But the ITSRR reliability report for 2008 reveals RailCorp is intending to relax its standards. "During 2007-08 RailCorp proposed to amend the target to 'not more than 17 per cent'," the report said. Spokesman Paul Rea said "RailCorp is seeking a target that takes into account increasing patronage".

"Our recently launched Customer Charter reflects our goal to optimise train timetables and available network infrastructure to help manage crowding," Mr Rea said.