The NSW government hopes "constructive conversations" with the rail union, helped by free fares and extra staffing commitments, can stave off transport chaos as thousands pile on buses and trains for major sporting fixtures.
NSW Transport Minister Jo Haylen on Saturday apologised to those who struggled amid disruption on the transport network on Friday, when about 20 per cent of timetabled services were cancelled.
"Thanks to the constructive conversations that we have had with the union, we've reached an agreement to allow us to keep trains running," she told reporters.
Special event services will take passengers to Sydney Olympic Park on Saturday for the Bledisloe Cup rugby union match between Australia and New Zealand.
Services on Sydney Trains and Metro will also be free this weekend.
It came after the Rail, Tram and Bus Union scored what it described as the "first big victory" of its latest industrial campaign, with the government agreeing to additional staff when a converted T3 line starts carrying driverless Metro trains.
"As a result, the current suite of industrial actions have been paused to allow for bargaining to continue in an intensive manner with a view of finalising the bargain quickly," the union told members on Friday, warning of further action if bargaining stalls.
The union is seeking annual wage increases of eight per cent over four years, boosts to superannuation, and a 35-hour work week among its claims.
It demanded fares of 50 cents or lower before allowing timetable changes supporting special event services.
Ms Haylen will meet with the union again next week as negotiations continue for a new enterprise bargaining agreement.
Opposition Leader Mark Speakman accused the government of being "weak" and "beholden to their union masters" following Friday's announcement.
"The multi-billion Metro project is supposed to be cutting edge and throwing staff onto 'driverless' trains is a joke," Mr Speakman said, criticising the agreed-upon presence of workers on platforms and trains.
Ms Haylen rejected the criticism on Saturday and said the compromise would boost reliability and commuter confidence.
"This is an indication of co-operation and goodwill, because ultimately our focus is on the travelling public," she said.
Ms Haylen said staffing arrangements will mirror those on the Metro network's recently opened City section.
"That has meant people have confidence to use those new Metro services, to have someone to ask for directions ... but also, these are trained staff members to deal with, for example, if there was to be an emergency situation," she said.
She said the newer sections are a "different situation" to the Northwest Metro which opened in 2019 and has fewer staff.
"It is a conversion of an older line, it is at grade, rather than in a tunnel," she said.
Premier Chris Minns has said safety upgrades would place barriers on platforms and bridges along the T3 corridor as part of its conversion to Metro.
A converted line will not open until independently approved by the national rail regulator under the same process that forced the government to push back the extension under the harbour to Sydenham opening in August, Mr Minns said on Friday.
The closure of the T3 train line from Sydenham to Bankstown in Sydney's southwest for the conversion to Metro was slated to begin on Saturday but will instead commence on September 30, and is expected to take 12 months.
Some 60,000 commuters will be pushed on to rail replacement buses in the meantime.
