Commuters in Manly and Lota who rely on the Cleveland Line will face significantly reduced train services from Tuesday, May 5, after Queensland Rail announced it would remove 273 services from its timetable amid an ongoing industrial dispute.
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The Cleveland Line is among those affected, with peak-hour services reduced to every 15 minutes, and off-peak services running every 30 minutes. Queensland Rail says the network will revert to a timetable similar to a Saturday schedule, with some additional services during morning and afternoon peaks.
TransLink has advised commuters directly via its official Facebook page: “On weekdays until further notice, services on all lines will operate to a modified schedule, similar to a Saturday timetable, with extra services during the morning and afternoon peaks to support weekday travel. Your journey may take longer than usual, so please plan ahead, allow extra travel time, and consider travelling earlier or later, or taking alternative transport options.”
The reduction follows rolling industrial action by three unions: the Electrical Trades Union (ETU), the Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU), and the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU). Queensland Rail is currently in a wage deal standoff with seven transport unions, with thousands of members participating in industrial action.
Queensland Rail has confirmed that 42 three-car sets are currently offline awaiting repairs, representing approximately 20 per cent of the fleet. Signalling problems, door faults and electrical issues are among the defects listed. The operator reduced train capacity from six cars to three last week before announcing the broader timetable cuts.
Queensland Rail head of corporate affairs Nev Conway said the operator did not have enough trains available to run the full timetable, attributing the situation to workers not performing their maintenance duties during strike action.
Queensland Rail has also issued 471 return-to-work notices to maintenance staff. The operator advised that 490 workers would not be paid if they continued to participate in strike action. Previously, those employees had been attending work and completing limited duties, but Queensland Rail ended that arrangement last week.
Dispute over cause of service cuts
Queensland Rail and the unions have each offered differing accounts of what triggered the timetable reduction. Queensland Rail maintains the maintenance backlog is a direct result of strike action, while the unions argue the situation was avoidable.
The AMWU said the timetable change was unnecessary and that the dispute could be resolved if agreement were reached on two classification-based claims. The union said Queensland Rail had failed to plan adequately for the consequences of the prolonged bargaining process.
The ETU argued that Queensland Rail’s decision to stop maintenance workers from performing partial duties was the direct cause of the timetable reduction, rather than the industrial action itself. The ETU has also called for electrical workers at Queensland Rail to be covered by a separate enterprise agreement, a request Queensland Rail has declined.
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Transport Minister Brent Mickelberg said 880 notices of industrial action had been lodged against Queensland Rail. He confirmed the reduced timetable would remain in place for the foreseeable future and flagged that further cuts were possible if the maintenance backlog continued to grow. The Minister said negotiations were a matter for Queensland Rail and indicated he did not intend to meet directly with the unions.
The reduced services are also expected to affect NRL Magic Round in three weeks, with around 150,000 ticket holders expected in Brisbane over the three-day event. Queensland Rail said it was working on contingency plans including replacement buses and privately hired train services through Stadiums Queensland.
Commuters are advised to check the TransLink journey planner at translink.com.au for live updates before travelling.
Published 4-May-2026
