Sydney commuters are facing another day of major disruptions after peace talks between the railway union and the state government stalled.
There are major delays across the railway network with trains running to a weekend timetable and commuters forced to cram into fewer carriages during the morning peak.
Train services are running at about 30 per cent capacity after drivers instigated a ban on operating the state's Waratah, Millennium and OSCAR train sets.
Transport for NSW said it was doing its best to maintain frequency of services but warned people to avoid non-essential travel or allow extra travel time.
One commuter told ABC News he had little sympathy for train drivers and did not know why they were taking industrial action.
"I don't think anybody is particularly on the side of the train drivers this time around, unfortunately," he said.
"A lot of my colleagues are struggling and it's just affecting people's ability to come in and earn some money."
But other commuters were more understanding.
"The trains are really crowded, they're coming really late but if it's a safety issue then I'm in full support of the drivers," one woman told the ABC.
"If they've got to strike, they've got to strike but it's affecting everyone every day — it's a bit s***," another man said.
Many commuters had an uncomfortable trip to work this morning after being forced to wait longer than usual for their trains to arrive.
"You could barely fit in and everyone just crammed in with each other and there's so many people coughing at the moment too," one man said.
"It was busy, the train stopped constantly, I'm late to work again," another woman said.
Members of the Rail, Bus and Tram union [RTBU] escalated their industrial action again today, citing ongoing safety concerns with the state's New Intercity Fleet trains.
The union claims the trains do not allow guards to properly view the platform before departing and want them modified before it will allow them to go into operation.
The state government said it was costing $30 million a month to store the trains and this week promised to spend $264 million to modify them in line with the union's demands.
But Alex Classens from the RBTU said the union needed a signed deed outlining the government's terms before its members will step down industrial action.
"We've been here before, we've had these genuine offers before," he said.
"Most people would know, you've got to have a document in front of you, you've got to see what it says before you can actually make a decision."
That has infuriated Transport Minister David Elliott, who said he expected the union to cease today's planned industrial action and negotiate in good faith.
"I said to him 'it's coming' and I offered him my resignation if it didn't come," Mr Elliott said.
"This is the most politically motivated industrial action since the dismissal of Gough Whitlam, make no mistake.
"Everything that the union asked for they've got."
The RBTU said more industrial action is likely if it cannot reach an agreement with the state government.
NSW Opposition Leader Chris Minns has called for a resumption of normal train services, amplifying pressure on the RTBU to reach a deal.
"You have to say that the government's shown some goodwill and there has been progress in relation to negotiations and I'm hopeful that for next week rail services can return to normal," he told Sky News.
"I'd love to see goodwill beget goodwill."
