Internal NSW government emails,as well as correspondence between the state and manufacturer CAF show the company told the government the trams had been travelling at “high speed” through “sharp curves” on the inner west network.
One note,sent to Transport for NSW on November 3,said the company believed this had contributed to cracking found in the entire fleet as well as key components on the trams operating “below minimum tolerance”.
“CAF current understanding is that the main factors influencing the appearance of the cracks in the Sydney fleet have been … No transition curves before or after sharp curves with low radius,and trams running at high speeds through these sharp curves,” the note said,among other points.
An email sent one day later between two Transport for NSW staff asked “was the track actually built to the necessary standard?“.
“Unknown,” the reply said.
“However,CAF were sent Sydney track design data,fully representative of original project.”
The inner west light rail system has been paralysed for up to 18 months after it was first revealed cracks had been found in all 12 trams servicing the network.