September 7, 2026 — 5:00am
Two specialist cranes built in Germany for critical maintenance on the highest parts of the Sydney Harbour Bridge are gathering dust in storage in the city’s west due to major delays installing them on the famed coathanger’s arches.
Even after NSW transport department officials twice flew to Germany two years ago to look at how to fit them to the bridge, the maintenance units have been left in storage near Blacktown since the first arrived in Sydney in late 2024, followed by the second about eight months later.
The delay in installing the specialist arch maintenance units comes as pressure mounts on Transport for NSW to carry out major repair work, including painting, before the Harbour Bridge’s centenary in less than six years.
The transport agency awarded a contract in 2018 to develop and supply the two arch maintenance units for the Harbour Bridge, which were meant to replace four units on its arches.
