Armadale train line: Fleet of new bus routes set to service reopened as opening date looms

Residents serviced by the soon-to-be-opened Byford rail line will have access to bus services covering nearly 500,000km around the city every year when the station makes its long-awaited open in October.

Following delays and budget blowouts the Byford rail line is set to open on October 13 and will have 10 additional buses to service nearby areas.

Six routes will connect to Byford station while a number of other routes will be altered to accommodate the reopened stations and improved amenities.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said the expanded routes would help service a growing population in Perth’s south east.

“What we see around this corridor, of course is new housing estates, more people moving in, in particular first home buyers in the affordable areas,” she said.

“We’re very much seeing a growth throughout both Armadale and of course Byford and all the many suburbs that have been developed around these corridors.

“So these bus services, as I said, will make it easier for people to use our new train station here in Armadale and also down in Byford.”

Ms Saffioti affirmed on Friday the $1.33 billion price tag for the new rail line — up from the originally estimated $797 million — was the final cost for the project, as part of $10.6 billion across the Metronet project.

The rail line was first announced in 2017 as an election commitment, and was meant to open in 2024 before the date was revised to June 2025, and later October.

Ms Saffioti previously said engineering challenges around a viaduct in Armadale and in Byford led to delays.