AUSTRALIA: The government of South Australia has taken the operation of suburban passenger train services in Adelaide back into the public sector, ending the contract with Keolis Downer. Tram operations are to follow.
The KDA joint venture of Keolis and Downer has run the rail services since January 31 2021 under an A$2·1bn contract awarded by the state’s previous Liberal administration. However, the Labor government elected in 2022 had made a manifesto commitment to take the services into the public sector.
On February 2 state Premier Peter Malinauskas said ’today we honour that promise — and in so doing we are creating a lasting public transport legacy of rail services owned and operated by and for South Australians’.
Transport Minister Tom Koutsantonis said the change ‘is not a reflection of Keolis Downer’s capability as a service provider and we thank them for their co-operation throughout this process. However, the reality is, when you privatise a service, you pay for the private operator’s profit margin that’s built into the price for service.’
The state will not pay any break fees. It is to fund 31 additional Passenger Service Assistant roles, and aims to improve station amenities.
Operational functions are now the responsibility of the state. KDA will provide customer service and security management functions until June 2027, and will manage the maintenance of the infrastructure and rolling stock until 2035.
KDA told Railway Gazette International that it was ’proud of the high level of performance we have maintained across the network over the last four years as network operator, and all that we have achieved in the passenger experience space’.
In July the state is to take over tram operations from the Torrens Connect joint venture of John Holland, UGL and Transit Systems, which will continue to provide maintenance services.
