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New trains for NSW on a slow boat from China By Rhya Haynes From: The Daily Telegraph July 29, 2009 12:00AM FOR CityRail passengers waiting for their train to arrive, the revelation the $4.8 billion project to deliver 78 new-generation trains is already five months behind schedule will hardly be a surprise. But there was a hint of progress yesterday when the first four test carriages arrived by sea from China. It will still be 18 months before passengers are travelling in one of the 626 new carriages. The test train, to be unveiled in Newcastle today by Transport Minister David Campbell, will be instrumental in proving the train's reliability. The engineering company behind the project, Downer EDI, will conduct 230,000km of night testing on the Sydney network before handing any new trains over. The company has admitted it previously delivered unreliable Millennium trains to CityRail due to a lack of testing. More than 60 defects and problems were reported in the first six months that the Millenniums were on the tracks in 2002. The Government has also failed to deliver rail projects in recent years, with the farcical $2.3 billion Epping to Chatswood Rail Link yet to be integrated into the network. A new CityRail timetable in October will integrate the new line into the CityRail network and will be a major test for the Government. Earlier this year analysts said Downer EDI was five months behind due to the certification process and risked further delays. "Downer EDI expects the four-car prototype will be run around the network over a four-month period before the first sets commence reliability running," JP Morgan analyst Alistair Reid said at the time. "This is the first time in Australia a prototype train has been used to prove the reliability of a new train build." He added there were fears about the company's "ability to successfully execute on the delivery phase" of the project and avoid a big cost blowout. In November the Auditor-General said the project was three months late. The project will provide jobs for western Sydney at a state-of-the-art, $220 million maintenance facility in Auburn, which will employ more than 100 people. Mr Campbell said the delivery was only a pre-production test vehicle. "Rigorous testing on CityRail's Sydney network will begin early in the new year, with the test train to be pushed to its limits. "The fleet delivers not only greater comfort for commuters but also better safety, reliability and accessibility."